Prince Florian Seeks a Bride
by Be Rose
Summary: Prince Florian needs to find a bride. There are plenty of princesses to choose from. The neighbouring countries alone have five. But finding the right one is not that simple. Will Florian succeed?
1. Chapter 1

**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**1.**

At the age of sixteen Prince Florian was told he had to find a bride. His father sent him to all the neighbouring kingdoms, all five of them. Two of them had princesses double his age which Florian thought was a problem. He said, "Thank you. Nice to meet you. Goodbye." And ran back home.

Two of them had princesses half his age which their fathers thought was a problem. "Please, come back in ten years' time, Prince Florian. The princess is too young," their fathers said.

The fifth one was so ugly Prince Florian's glasses cracked when he looked at her. He thought it would be too expensive to have to buy glasses all the time. So he said, "Fair princess, I'm afraid our country is too poor to house your kind of beauty. Thank you for seeing me."

Then he went, stopping at the optician's on the way to buy new glasses. The optician, hearing Florian was the crown prince, put 'supplier to the royal family' on his shop window, his advertising and his business cards. Consequently he nearly quadrupled his income, which allowed him to marry his sweetheart.

But this is the story of Prince Florian and he was looking for a bride.

ooOOoo

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**Author's Note: Because this is so short, I'll immediately post the second chapter.**


	2. Chapter 2

**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**2.**

When he came home he told his parents about his failure to find a suitable partner.

"Well," said the king, "If none of those girls will do you'll have to find a wife somewhere else. You can start tomorrow on a quest to find a wife."

The next day it was raining hard and the queen said, "You're not going through that."

"Come on, darling, he's a grown boy. He won't melt from a bit of rain."

"He's not going. He'll only catch a cold and I'm the one who has to wash his snotty handkerchiefs. I don't think so."

"All right, all right, he can go tomorrow.

Later that day, as it was getting dark, there was a knock at the castle door. The king opened and saw a wet, bedraggled girl standing at the door.

"Please Sir, can I come in. I'm wet through and I have nowhere to go."

The king let her in and called his wife who came running. When she saw the soaked girl she took her to a spare room and ran a hot bath for her. While she was getting some dry clothes for the girl she asked her, "Who are you that you are out in this weather on your own?"

"I'm … I'm a princess," the girl answered. "I'm Princess Anna. I ran away when my uncle usurped my country."

"Oh, a princess, I see. I'll get your bed ready while you have your bath."

When the queen had gotten the bed ready she went to her son and husband.

"Florian might not have to go away after all," she said. "This girl may be a princess. I've set everything up for the test with the mattresses and the pea. Tomorrow we'll know."

The following morning when the girl came down to breakfast the queen immediately asked her, "How did you sleep, my dear?"

"It took me a while to get on top of all those mattresses. There were rather a lot. But once I was in the bed I slept like a rose. It was wonderfully soft."

"Oh," said the queen in a disappointed voice, "how nice for you. I suppose you'll want to move on today, Anna."

"…well … yes … of course," the dry princess in the wrinkled dress said. After breakfast she left.

As luck would have it she arrived at the kingdom with the ugly princess who happened to have a good-looking brother and parents who thought Princess Anna was the kind of daughter-in-law they wanted. The prince and the once wet princess had a happy life together. His ugly sister who was the oldest became queen, beloved by all the people. The pretty Princess Anna liked her sister-in-law and gave her tips on how to look better. A couple of years later a passing duke thought the young queen looked interesting rather than ugly. They married and she found the happiness she'd craved all her life.

But this is the story of Prince Florian and he was looking for a bride.

ooOOoo


	3. Chapter 3

**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**3.**

Florian travelled further, beyond the neighbours' kingdoms. There he found a tiny principality. The ruling prince had a son and heir and a daughter, Amelia, for whom he wanted a princely husband. Prince Florian had heard of the beauty of Princess Amelia so he brought a bunch of beautiful, rare and heavenly scented flowers that grew high up in the mountains of his country, and presented himself at the palace. He met the princess who was indeed very beautiful and gave her the flowers saying, "The most beautiful flowers of my country, for the most beautiful flower of all."

Princess Amelia smiled when she received the flowers. She scrunched up her face at their scent, felt the leaves and petals, shrugged her shoulders and said, "Meh, real." Then she threw the flowers towards a nearby table. They missed the table and fell on the ground. The princess didn't even look at them.

Florian told her about his country, its mountains, its lakes, its meadows full of flowers and the princess shrugged her shoulders and said "Meh." Then he told her about the clock tower he had seen on his travels in the kingdom of one of his neighbours. It was full of clockwork figures: a mountain climber who climbed a bit higher every quarter and slid down the mountain again when the clock struck the hour; two goats at the top of the tower who bleated at half past every hour; the little woman who came out of her house every hour and beat the hours on her carpet, and the carillon that played a merry tune when the hour had struck. The princess clapped her hands and said, "Fantastic, fantastic."

Then Florian asked her for her hand in marriage and Princess Amelia asked, "Do you live in the place with the interesting tower?"

"No," said Prince Florian. "We have real mountains and lakes and flowers."

The princess shrugged her shoulders and said, "Meh, too ordinary." And she left him standing.

But she was beautiful and Prince Florian thought he rather liked her and wanted to win her. When he left the princely castle he saw a swineherd and got an idea. He arranged with the swineherd to swap clothes. While herding the swine he had time to make a trinket. It looked like a bowl with a glass lid and bells around the edge. On top of the lid was what looked like a handle with four coloured buttons on it. Florian sat down on the steps to the palace and pushed one of the buttons. The bowl started spinning round, the bells started tinkling, shapes appeared and disappeared in the bowl and a merry tune played loudly. He pressed the second button and different shapes appeared and a different tune sounded. When the princess heard this she wanted the trinket and sent one of her friends to ask what the swineherd wanted for it.

"Ten kisses from Princess Amelia," said Florian the swineherd.

When the princess was told, she came running down the steps.

"I can't give you ten kisses. What do you really want for it?"

"Ten kisses from Princess Amelia," Florian answered again.

"Each of my friends will give you one kiss, that comes to ten kisses as well," the princess bargained.

"Ten kisses from Princess Amelia or I take it away," said Florian.

"I want it," said the princess. "You'll get your kisses."

First she wiped his face with her white scented handkerchief, then she gave him ten kisses, counted by her friends. Florian gave her the musical bowl and Princess Amelia was over the moon with her new toy. It only played four tunes though and so she soon tired of it. Just as she fancied something else she saw Florian the swineherd stirring in a little pot, smelling the air above it and saying something. She went down the steps and stopped just behind where he sat to listen to him. Florian stirred in the pot and said, "Red cabbage and sausage for the prime minister." He stirred again and said, "Spaghetti for the doctor." Another stir and he said, "Lobster at the palace."

"What have you got there?" the princess asked.

"A pot. When I stir it, I can smell what people are eating," Florian answered.

"Oh! I want it. What do you want for it," asked the princess.

"Fifty kisses," said Florian.

Again the princess tried to barter, offering him fifty kisses from her friends and again Florian refused every offer until the princess accepted his price. She wiped his face with her handkerchief and kissed him fifty times, counted by her friends. The little pot became her property and Princess Amelia stirred and stirred and knew what everyone would be eating. Eventually it no longer interested her, the smells made her sick. Totally bored she looked out of the window and saw the swineherd sitting on the steps with ten flowerpots. He pressed a button on each of them and out of every pot a plant started to appear. It unfolded leaves and became taller, buds appeared on it, they opened and flowers came out of the buds, a different colour in each pot. He pressed the buttons again and flowers and leaves folded up and the plants disappeared back into the pots. Then he started the whole thing over again. Princess Amelia ran out shouting, "I want them, I want those flowers. How much do you want?"

Florian looked at her. "If you want all of them it will cost hundred kisses from you," he said.

The princess tried to bargain again but she soon gave up; she wanted the artificial flowers at any price. She wiped Florian's face with her handkerchief and started kissing him. Unfortunately for her, her father appeared. On seeing his daughter kissing the swineherd he became angry.

"Have you no shame, kissing the swineherd?" he shouted.

The princess tried to explain it was in payment of the pots with the flowers but her father was not impressed.

"You forget yourself for the sake of these trinkets?" he roared. "You're no longer my daughter. Marry the swineherd and become his wife, but you're no longer welcome in my castle."

Florian left the princess with the flowerpots and exited the castle grounds. There he met the swineherd who was still wearing his clothes.

"Could we change back?" the swineherd asked. "I've been worrying about my pigs ever since we changed clothes. I prefer to take care of them myself."

Florian changed back into his princely attire and Princess Amelia who had followed him out recognised him.

"You're the prince," she said. "I will marry you now. Absolutely."

Prince Florian shrugged his shoulders. "Meh," he said. "I don't think I want a wife who doesn't value what is real and is willing to sell herself for a trinket. The swineherd can have you if he wants you." And Prince Florian left.

The princess who was afraid to be alone in the world stayed with the swineherd and married him. She still had the musical bowl and the smelling-pot and the flowers that Florian had made. The swineherd sold them and with the money bought his own herd of pigs. He became the wealthiest pig merchant in the principality and then Princess Amelia didn't mind anymore that she had married him.

But this is the story of Prince Florian and he was looking for a bride.

ooOOoo


	4. Chapter 4

**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**4.**

The next country Florian went to had eight princesses, all of them married. They happened to be at home for the birthday of their little brother. Florian apologised for the disturbance, sent his best wishes to the birthday boy and left. After two more countries where the princesses were only toddlers he arrived at a kingdom that had a king and three princes but no princess, not even a queen. Disappointed at his lack of success Florian went to the nearest restaurant to have a drink and a toasted sandwich. Because he sighed so much the waiter asked him what was the matter.

"I'm looking for a bride," Florian said, "and there are none here."

"There might be; in the tower just outside town. It is rumoured a girl lives there with beautiful long hair. Of course, she was locked up by a witch so nobody goes there. Too dangerous. It is said you just have to say 'Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let your hair down' and she'll do it so you can climb up. Rapunzel is her name. Stupid, don't you think?"

"I will go there," cried out Florian. "I'll free her from the witch."

Florian set off for the tower outside town. It was quite a way outside town but he reached it eventually. At the foot of the hexagonal tower, under an open window he shouted, "Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let your hair down."

Immediately the shutters of the window were closed. Florian tried again at the second window.

"Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let your hair down."

Here too the shutters were closed. Perhaps I'm saying something wrong, he thought. Florian moved to the third window.

"Rapunzel, Rapunzel, please, let your hair down." Again the shutters were closed.

The fourth window. "Rapunzel, Rapunzel, could you please let your hair down?" Same reaction again.

The fifth window. "Rapunzel, Rapunzel, would it be at all possible to let your hair down?" The result was still the same.

The sixth window. "Miss Rapunzel, Miss Rapunzel, would you mind letting your hair down for me?"

With a crash the last shutters closed. Florian wondered what could be the problem. Then he remembered the witch. She must be there. That's when he finally saw the door in the tower. He tried the handle and it opened without a problem. Slowly Florian walked upstairs. If the witch was there he would jump out and kill her. At the top of the stairs was a door. He put his ear against it and heard laughter on the other side. Carefully he opened it a crack and looked inside. Four beautiful young women, sitting round a table set for tea, were talking and laughing. Florian pushed the door open completely.

"Who are you? Where is Rapunzel?" he asked.

"I'm Rapunzel," one of the girls said. "Who are you and why do you come barging into my home?"

"I've … come to rescue you?" Florian hesitated. He looked closely at the girl with the cropped hair. "If you are Rapunzel why haven't you got long hair?"

"Do you think it was fun having hair like that? Do you think it was easy to comb, or wash? Do you?"

The image of an angry, spitting cat popped into Florian's mind as the girl came charging towards him. He was pressed against a wall, trying to stay as still as possible, while a fury with blazing eyes was shouting at him.

"Do you think it was pleasant to have people climbing up it? Do you think I appreciated it when that prince came up here and pretended to be nice and friendly only to run when he found out I was pregnant? Well, do you?"

"I'm … I'm sorry … I didn't think …"

"Of course not. You never do. MEN!" Disgust dripped from every letter.

"We're … we're not all the same you know," Florian ventured to say.

"Are you sure? Well, you know my story. Now, let me present my friends to you."

Rapunzel pointed at a tall blonde girl.

"That is Briar Rose," she said. "Tell him Briar."

"I had fallen asleep," Briar said. "I would sleep for a hundred years. When I woke up I had two children, and their father just said, 'goodbye, it was fun while it lasted,' before he left, never to show his face anymore."

Then Rapunzel pointed at a dark-haired girl.

"That's my friend, Snow-White. Tell him about your experience, Snow."

"I had eaten an apple that didn't agree with me. The dwarfs thought I was dead and put me in a glass coffin. Then the prince came. He kissed me and wanted to take me in my coffin to his castle. I woke up when someone dropped the coffin. I thought the prince would be my true love and I married him. But he wanted me to play dead all the time. He wouldn't even touch me unless I pretended to be dead. I ran away and I'm not going back to that disgusting creature."

"Cinderella there is my last friend," Rapunzel said while pointing at an incredibly beautiful girl in a plain dress with an apron.

"I thought my prince loved me as well. And perhaps he did." The three other girls groaned when Cinderella said this. "Well, he might have," she said firmly. She looked at Florian. "He just didn't like the fact I wanted to clean."

Florian was just going to say that was no problem as his mother, the queen, liked to keep her house tidy as well when Cinderella started to rub at a perfectly clean table. He looked at Rapunzel.

"Why .." he started but Rapunzel interrupted him saying, "She's a bit obsessive about cleanliness. I can tell you from the four of us that you are wasting your time here. Not one of us is interested in following a man to his home. We're free here, we can do exactly what we want to and not a man can order us to do anything we don't want to. I suggest you leave before I have you arrested for unlawfully entering our residence."

Florian didn't hesitate. "I'll be off then. Best of luck to you ladies. Goodbye." Then he hurried down the tower and on towards the next country.

"He seemed rather nice," said Cinderella looking through the now open window at the fast disappearing prince.

"They all do," said Briar Rose, "to begin with."

"You're right," answered Cinderella and started wiping the window sill.

The four women stayed together in the tower, grew old and were very satisfied that no man would ever, could ever, cheat them. They were free.

But this is the story of Prince Florian and he was looking for a bride.

ooOOoo


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: A big Thank You to Jimli for reviewing and following, to UrgingBee for following and favouriting and to Fantasy Boudicca and Mima2408 for following this story.**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**5.**

Florian, who was generally a happy kind of chap, journeyed further and further from home, looking for his future wife. One day he came to the border of yet another kingdom. Two guards were patrolling the road and when they saw Florian entering their kingdom, one of them ordered him to stop.

"Halt! You can't just barge into our kingdom. You have to answer some questions."

"I'm sorry," said Florian. "What do you want to know?"

"The sergeant will ask that. He's in the pink building over there."

The guard, desperately trying not to laugh, pointed towards a miniature chocolate box cottage in pink. His friend was guffawing the moment the guard had mentioned the word 'pink'.

"The pink cottage?"

"Yes." Guffaw.

"Your sergeant is in the pink cottage?"

"Yes." Guffaw.

"Why a pink cottage? It's a very strange colour for the guardhouse."

"Yes." The first guard could just about say the word before he too burst out laughing.

Florian walked towards the pink building. It looked somewhat like a playhouse for a young princess. When he had reached the door of the strange guardhouse Florian looked towards the guards again. They were rolling on the ground, laughing uncontrollably. Florian entered. Inside the cottage was just one room. The floor was painted grass green; the walls lime green and the ceiling lemon yellow. The curtains had roses on them and on the white windowsills were pastel coloured pots with flowering plants. A man was sitting on a white chair behind a white desk, busily writing. The wall behind him had white shelves on it from floor to ceiling. There were binders in pastel colours marked A to Z and three stacks of books as well as a couple of green potted plants. More plants stood on a white plant stand in one of the corners. An empty white chair stood in front of the desk.

"Excuse me," Florian said. "Are you the sergeant?"

The man looked up from his paperwork.

"Yes, I'm the sergeant. Are you a newcomer to our country?"

Florian nodded.

"Sit down then. What's your name and occupation? Have you got an act ready? Of what nature is it?"

Florian sat down. "My name is Florian and I'm a crown prince," he said. "I must say I don't understand your other questions."

"You're here for Princess Clara, aren't you? So, what's your act?"

"Yes, I'd very much like to see your princess but what act are you talking about?"

"The act that is going to make her laugh of course." And when he saw Florian's mystified look he added, "Don't you know anything? Our princess can't laugh and whoever makes her laugh will marry her. Simple as that. So, what's your act?"

"Can't I think about that a bit? Can't I just decide later?"

"No, I have to know before you're allowed entry to our country."

"I can tell a good story. Perhaps that would make her laugh. What do you think?"

"Sounds fine." The sergeant wrote down 'storyteller' next to Florian's name and put a stamp on it. He took down a pale yellow folder with a big F on it and put the paper with Florian's details inside. Finally he gave a piece of paper to Florian. On it were four large figures **7547**.

"This is your number, sir. You can go through now," the sergeant said. "Just follow this road and you'll come to the palace. Good luck, sir."

Florian walked to the palace and on the way tried to think of a funny story to tell the princess. He'd started scribbling some ideas on the back of the piece of paper with the number. At the entrance to the palace a man was waiting. Florian went up to him.

"May I have your number, sir," he asked.

"I do need the paper back. I started writing my story on the back."

"Ah, a storyteller. You can find pens and paper inside on the storytellers desk. Don't worry there is regular replenishment of ink, paper and pens. Number 7547, storyteller. It's written down, sir. You can go in. Through the door on the right."

The room Florian entered was full of people writing, striking lines through, scrunching up paper and throwing it away. The floor crunched of all the incomplete masterpieces that had amassed on it; abandoned by their creators.

Florian found a free spot at the table and started writing his funny story. Occasionally someone came in and called out some numbers. Sometimes one or two of the authors went through the large door to follow the caller and never returned. He asked why they were gone but the writers didn't answer. They were all too deep into their stories and barely alive to what happened around them. Eventually a boy who brought a new stack of paper told him.

"The princess sees ten people at the time and each can try in turn to make her laugh. If they don't succeed they just have to leave the palace. That's why they don't come back."

Florian had just finished his story, ending it with a nice curled swirl when the caller opened the door and said, "7541 to 7550". Florian got up together with one other author and followed the caller. From other rooms eight other hopefuls joined them. They were led to the great reception hall where the court was assembled. The king and queen sat on their thrones with their bored looking daughter in between them. Number 7541 started unsuccessfully and the following three continued with as little result. Number 7545 had just started sweating because his mime act was not going down well with the princess when a terrible noise came from the courtyard below. Florian looked out of the window and saw the strangest sight he'd ever beheld. A parade like no other. Up front walked a young man with what looked like a gold-painted goose under his arm. A girl followed him with her hand on the goose. It looked as if she was stuck to it. Two other girls pulled the first one's arm and dress, or perhaps they were trying to pull away. A clergyman was pulling the dress of one of the girls shouting, "You hussies! Don't follow that boy! You hussies! Stop!"

A bridegroom was pulling the clergyman's coattails while his bride was pulling his. Both were shouting, "Come with us! We're late for our wedding!" The rest of the bridal party were all following, visibly against their will. They were stuck to each other and to the bride. At the end of the train of people ran the two guards dragging the sergeant who had tried to stop the whole thing and now couldn't get away anymore.

Then Florian heard a chuckle that grew steadily louder until he was nearly deafened by a loud guffaw. Next to him Princess Clara was looking at this strange mixture of people and she was snorting with laughter. The young man with the goose looked up and saw the princess. He went straight for the entrance and shortly after the door to the reception hall was opened. The whole troupe, now including the poor man who had tried to stop them at the castle door, came in and snaked round and round the place. All the time Princess Clara had been laughing until tears of laughter were coursing down her cheeks.

"What's your name, boy," the king asked. "You won the princess. You'll be our next king."

Florian didn't wait any longer. He pushed his story in a nearby wastepaper basket and left the room, the palace and the country.

The boy, Hans, released the people from his golden goose, married Princess Clara who had no problems laughing anymore, and became King Hans I.

Florian's story was picked out of the wastepaper basket by the sergeant who took it to a publisher who liked it. It appeared in the bookshops soon after. Princess Clara bought the book and thought it was the funniest thing she'd ever read. The sergeant became a successful author. In his garden stood the pink guardhouse where he wrote many successful novels.

But this is the story of prince Florian and he was looking for a bride.

ooOOoo


	6. Chapter 6-1

**Author's note: Thanks to Caroline Lily-ann Youla for reviewing and to Jimli for reviewing and favouriting.**

**Chapter 6 is somewhat longer than previous chapters and will be posted in three parts. It is more serious than previous chapters but I hope not too serious.**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**6.1**

Florian was singing a merry tune. He thought that perhaps he'd escaped an unfortunate marriage with a princess who first couldn't laugh and then could hardly stop laughing. Singing and whistling he walked into a large town with beautiful old buildings so well maintained that they seemed to have been built recently. The people too all seemed to be well-off. They were also hurrying towards the same spot. Florian followed them and came to a large square in front of such a grand building it could only be a palace. The inhabitants of the town seemed to be waiting for something.

"What's happening," Florian asked.

"Sssss, you'll soon see," the woman next to him whispered.

Sure enough, from the open window of the castle could be heard a triumphant shout, "No! That's not what I was thinking of."

Everyone was staring at the big double doors of the castle now. Fifteen minutes later they opened and out came a man wearing a blonde, curly wig with coloured bows, riding a hobby-horse, dressed in a short frilly dress with frilly knickers showing. On the balcony in front of the open window a young girl appeared.

"You lost the bet, brave knight," she said. "Now ride home on your noble steed."

The man rode the hobby-horse across the square and down the main street out of the town. Nobody, not one of all the people standing in the square, mocked the knight. And Florian was too astonished at the sight.

"Are there any more who want to try their luck at guessing my thoughts?" the girl on the balcony asked.

"Is she the princess?" Florian asked his neighbour.

"Yes, that's Princess Maria," she answered. "Our princess needs to marry but she gives every suitor this silly task and if they don't succeed they are chased out of the palace dressed like the poor man you just saw or worse."

"She's very beautiful," Florian said. He could barely keep his eyes of her.

"You're going to try, aren't you?" his neighbour said. "Well, take my advice. Don't sleep at night. The princess sleepwalks – I've seen her pass my door – and I think that is when she gets her ideas for the next day."

"Thank you, madam. That is very kind of you."

"I was just leaving my house when you passed. You sounded so happy and merry when you walked into our town. That's why I told you this. Good luck, stranger."

"Florian, my name is Florian," he said and walking out into the open he called out to the princess on the balcony, "I would try my luck at guessing your thoughts."

Princess Maria looked at Florian. "I advise you to desist, stranger. I lost count of how many have tried and failed. Please, turn back and continue on your way."

"I can't, Your Highness. If I don't try I will always wonder if I could have won you."

"Of course," she said. "Come in."

Florian entered the castle and was shown a comfortable room for the night. The servant who'd escorted him there informed him "Dinner will be at seven. Meanwhile you can freshen up. If you haven't got anything suitable to wear with you, there is plenty of choice in the wardrobe. Someone will come to escort you to the dining room."

Florian thanked the man en had a good look round before he took a bath and had a rest. Totally rested and dressed in some fine clothes he felt like a crown prince again. Quarter to seven a servant arrived to take him to the dining room. He was seated on the right-hand side of the king, Princess Maria to the left of the king. The food was so delicious that not much was said during the meal. Afterwards the king asked Florian to have coffee with him and his daughter in the private sitting room so they could discuss proceedings for the following day.

When they were sitting comfortably and coffee was served the king smiled and said to Florian, "I'm glad you decided to try your luck. I'm not getting any younger and I want my daughter to get married. I want to see my grandchildren before it's too late."

"Father, don't say that," Princess Maria cried out. Florian could see tears and sorrow that made her blue eyes look nearly black.

"I'll do my best to win her," said Florian. "What exactly am I supposed to do? I'm a foreigner here and have no idea what the task is."

"It sounds very simple," said the king. "Tomorrow at three, you have to tell the princess what she's thinking of. If you fail, she can make you look ridiculous in any way she cares to name, just like that poor knight you saw leave today."

"And if I win?"

The king sighed, "Nobody has won to date. And believe me it is all checked. She has to give her answer in a sealed envelope to me, so there can be no cheating. You have to guess the princess' thoughts three times before you've won her."

"Thank you for telling me," said Florian. "If you wouldn't mind, I'd like to go to my room now. I have to try and work out what the princess will be thinking of tomorrow. Goodnight, Your Majesty, goodnight, Your Highness.

Florian left the room and asked the first person he saw where he could find the kitchen. There he asked the cook if he could have a pot of strong black coffee. He asked it so nicely that she made it for him herself. Back in his room Florian put his travel clothes on, opened the window, tied the rope in his travel pack securely to a heavy sideboard and threw the other end out of the window. He switched the lights off and sitting on the windowsill with his coffee he kept an eye on the palace door that could be seen from his room.

It was two o'clock and Florian was wondering whether his informant had been wrong when he heard a soft noise. Somebody had left the palace and was crossing the square towards the main road. Quickly Florian clambered down the rope and followed the figure. No doubt about it, it was the princess though Florian didn't think she was sleepwalking. She seemed to be going towards the city gates but they had been closed at ten and wouldn't open until eight next morning.

Fifty metres before the gate, the princess went left into a narrow alleyway. It went straight for a bit and then made a bend towards the city wall. There she opened a door in the wall and slipped out, followed by Florian. She ran quickly towards the forest in the distance. Florian had to keep back a bit so she couldn't see him. When Florian reached the forest the princess had just arrived at a strange house that had appeared there. She went in and Florian was just too late at the door. It had closed already and wouldn't budge. Pulling or pushing, the door didn't open so he walked around the house trying to find another way in. There was none but through an open window he could hear the princess talk to someone.

"There is another one, my love. What shall I think of this time? It becomes more and more difficult to think of new things. Tell me what to do."

A man's voice answered, "The only way to stop this is to tell your father. Then there won't be any need for this anymore."

"I can't, my love. You know that."

"Yes, I know darling. Think of your shoes tomorrow. Keep it simple."

All was still after that until the noise of a door that opened told Florian the princess was going. He followed her but after only a few paces he heard a noise behind him. He turned around and saw the house had disappeared. He hurried back towards the town but the princess had already gone inside and had locked the door. Florian could only get as comfortable as possible with his cloak and sleep outside.

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To be continued ...


	7. Chapter 6-2

******Author's note: Welcome to new followers Moonshoes94 and 13-Red-Cards. To reviewers ****************Jimli, **Caroline Lily-ann Youla and 13-Red-Cards: your reviews bring sunshine to the rainiest day.

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**6.2**

Next morning Florian was the first to walk into town, straight to the castle's breakfast room where he had a bowl of porridge with raspberry jam. That warmed him up again. Until three in the afternoon Florian was free so he went for a walk in the town and admired the stunning architecture. It all looked grand and expensive, totally different from the more homely buildings in his country. He had lunch outside an inn overlooking a pretty little square. Afterwards he slowly made his way to the castle where he arrived just in time.

He was pointed towards the throne room where the whole court was assembled. Florian bowed to the king and his daughter who were seated on their thrones.

"I wondered if you had perhaps sneaked out of town," Princess Maria said.

"Oh no," Florian answered. "… _**I**_ ... have no reason."

Before the princess could start wondering, he asked her, "How much time do I have to guess your answer? And how many tries do I have?"

"You have half an hour to come up with an answer, but you're allowed only one answer."

"Thank you," said Florian and began pacing up and down the room, holding his chin as if he was deep in thought. Occasionally he stopped in front of the princess and studied her until she started fidgeting.

His time was nearly up when the princess said, "Are you going to give an answer today or are you going to concede defeat and take your punishment."

"Your Highness has to give me time so I can read your thoughts. Besides I would be a fool to not at least hazard a guess. But I'm pretty sure I don't need to guess. I'm pretty sure you've been thinking about … your shoes."

Princess Maria turned a shade paler. "You're right," she said and hurriedly left the room amid the clapping and cheering of the king and the rest of the court.

"Well done, my boy. Splendid answer," the king said, clapping Florian on the back.

The following night the princess went to the house in the forest again and again Florian was too late to go in behind her. This time though he knew which window to go to. There he found a log and standing on it he could just look through the window. What he saw astonished him. In the room stood a richly dressed man with the face of an ugly troll. Princess Maria came in and ran straight into the ugly thing's arms. Florian couldn't believe she actually kissed it.

"He guessed," she said. "He actually guessed what we had agreed upon. What am I to do next?"

"You could stop this comedy and tell your father about us, darling."

"You know I can't," sobbed the princess. "He'll die if I tell him. His heart couldn't take it."

"I know, darling. It is summer so think of something unlikely. Think of your winter gloves. Think of your warmest winter gloves. And to add a difficulty: think of the left one of your warm winter gloves. He's unlikely to guess that."

Then Florian saw Princess Maria and the troll-faced man sit together kissing and whispering vows of love. He sat down on the log, just in case the troll changed his mind about the glove but after a while he heard the door open and the princess whispering "Good night, David". Because of the lack of hiding places close to the secret door into town Florian had to sleep outside once more.

Next morning Florian surprised the guards at the gate yet again. After another breakfast of porridge with the delicious raspberry jam he went in search of the king's doctor. When he had found him, Florian didn't beat about the bush and asked the doctor immediately, "Does the king have any health problems? A weak heart perhaps?"

The doctor was taken aback by this seemingly mercenary question. In a none-too-friendly tone of voice he answered, "It is by no means certain you'll win our princess, young man. But if you do you'll have to wait your turn to become king. His Majesty, I'm pleased to tell. Is enjoying an excellent health and is likely to live for a very long time yet."

"I'm pleased to hear it. I had heard some rumours and the way the king himself talked about seeing his grandchildren before it was too late led me to believe …"

"No, no, no," the doctor interrupted. In a much friendlier voice he continued, "There is nothing wrong with the king except that he's a bit of a drama queen."

"I think it upsets the princess," Florian suggested.

"Surely not. Princess Maria knows her father only too well," the doctor said in his most reassuring bedside voice.

At three o'clock Florian entered the throne room. Just like the previous day he walked up and down, rubbing his chin, studying the princess even more closely than the previous day. Finally he said, "I've worked out what Her Highness is thinking about. It is summer, so she will have been thinking about a wintery item to try and confuse me. Probably an item of clothing; Her Highness is after all a woman." Florian saw the princess wringing her hands. "Gloves," he said. "I know! Her Highness is thinking about her warmest winter gloves, more specifically the left one."

Princess Maria turned pale as death. "You're right," she said with a sob before running out of the room.

Again the king and his court cheered loudly but Florian was looking at the door the princess had disappeared through. He was sure she'd been crying and he didn't like it that he had been the cause. That evening he left the town before the gates closed and was waiting in the forest for the princess to arrive. The house was not to be seen but he knew it would appear later. When it did he hid as close to the door as possible. The princess entered the house and before the door could close Florian pushed a thick branch in its way. Quietly he too went in and found the room where Princess Maria was talking to her troll lover. Florian peeked through the keyhole and saw the lovers embrace.

"He guessed." The princess was crying. "What are we going to do if he guesses the last thing as well?"

"There are only two possibilities, my darling, and one of them can't be done. I don't want you to risk your father's health. The other possibility is to think of me. Tomorrow, think of my head."

"I think of you all the time," said the princess, tears rolling down her cheeks. The creature buried his face in the princess' black curls. They held each other tight until it was time for the princess to go. Florian hid in the shadows when she came out of the room and left the house. Then he opened the door to the troll's room and went in. He only just managed to jump out of the way of the creature's sword and drew his own. Florian hated fighting; always had. His father had even sent him to a special training camp when he was twelve. It didn't teach him to love battles but at least he could hold his own. More through luck than skill he eventually managed to disarm his opponent. The troll's sword twirled through the air and landed in Florian's hand. With the point of his sword hovering over his heart and Florian's sword at his throat the creature was cornered.

"What are you waiting for", the troll-man said. "Cut off my head and end this."

Florian shook his head. "I've inherited a large streak of nosiness from my mother," he said, "and I want some questions answered. Besides, I seriously doubt that offering a girl the head of her lover is a good start to a relationship. So, first question: what are you? You have the face of a troll but trolls are short and stocky, not tall and slim."

"What does it matter? I'm doomed to live and die like this because the king can never be told about his daughter's love for me. It will kill him. I think you care about Maria, so end my miserable life and make her happy."

Florian lowered the swords and smiled. "I have a much better idea," he said.

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To be continued ...


	8. Chapter 6-3

**Author's note: Thanks to reviewers c.a.s.1404 and jimli and to Free Fallen Sky for following.**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**6.3**

Next morning he walked back into town, went to have a chat with the cook after his usual breakfast of porridge and raspberry jam, packed all his belongings in his backpack and went for a walk in town. At two o'clock he arrived at the gate and engaged the guards in a conversation. Neither of them noticed the cloaked figure entering the town. At exactly three o'clock Florian went into the throne room with his backpack and a linen sack. The princess sat next to her father as usual, staring at the floor, wringing her hands. She looked so unhappy it could have made a stone cry. The king looked totally bewildered at the young man who appeared ready to leave.

"Are you planning to go somewhere, prince Florian?" the king asked. "You do realise that you can't just leave if you don't guess right."

"I know exactly what Her Highness is thinking about, Your Majesty," Florian answered.

The princess looked up at Florian and his luggage. The bottom of the sack was red and from it was leaking a red liquid. She started to shake and when Florian said, "The head …" she shrieked, pointed at the sack and fainted.

Florian saw what the princess had pointed at. "I told cook that lid would never hold," he said. Then he kneeled in front of the princess. "Princess Maria, don't be afraid. That is just raspberry jam. The head you're thinking of is still very much attached."

She opened her eyes and Florian hearing noise outside the throne room added, "He'll be here soon now."

The king didn't understand what was happening. "Why did she faint? Who will be here?"

"He," said Florian, and pointed at the cloaked figure that had just come in. "This guessing game is devised because Princess Maria wants to marry him and none other."

"I don't see what the problem is. She can marry anyone she wants. Whoever takes her fancy is fine by me. I thought the guessing was for her to find an intelligent man." The king looked at his daughter questioningly. He feared he didn't understand her anymore.

"What if the man she wants is ugly?" Florian asked. The king shrugged his shoulders. "I mean troll-ugly," added Florian. "That ugly."

At those words the stranger dropped his cloak. There were gasps, including from the king, and even some shrieks, mainly from women.

"Who's he?" squeaked the king.

"Your daughter's sweetheart, the man she loves."

The king flopped down on his throne and looked at his daughter. "You love that?" he asked.

Seeing that her father was in no danger of sudden death she answered, "Yes."

"You've had the choice of any number of good-looking men and you want that?"

"Yes."

"Why didn't you tell me instead of playing this guessing charade?"

"She was afraid you would die if she told you," Florian answered for the princess who looked at her lover, standing there in full daylight.

"Why would I die? I'm a healthy man, not even old yet."

"Why did you say you wanted grand-children before it was too late? The princess thought it was because you had heart problems."

"O dear." The king felt rather stupid. "Of course you can marry him, if you love him."

There was sniggering and tittering all around the room. The princess could hear whispers "Beauty and the Beast", "The princess and the troll-king", "Do you think he can talk?"

Princess Maria rushed to her sweetheart's side. Holding his hand she said, loud enough for the whole throne room and anyone listening at the door to hear, "I love this man, my David. I am his and I want to marry him. Father, please, give us your blessing."

As soon as she had said this, the troll-skin peeled away from David's face and instead of looking like a troll the man next to her was handsome. Everyone who had shrieked before now gasped. Even Maria was surprised.

"How … Why … why didn't you tell me?" she asked.

David caressed her face. "I couldn't, my darling," he answered. "You had to acknowledge your love for me believing I had the face of a troll for ever. Only then could the enchantment be broken."

"Enchantments tend to happen to people as a way of punishment. I would like to know what you were punished for, seeing you're going to marry my daughter," said the king.

"Do you remember the royal family who ruled the great kingdom that surrounds your little one?"

The King nodded. "I've been taking care of it since the death of its king until the next in line to the throne is found. After their only child disappeared the queen became ill and eventually died. It broke the king's heart. He was a big, strong bear of a man and he dwindled away until he followed his wife in death. Did you have something to do with the disappearance of the boy? Is that why you were punished?"

"I was punished because my father refused to marry me to the daughter of a witch. Unfortunately my father wasn't very diplomatic. He told the witch that his good-looking son couldn't be married to her ugly troll of a daughter. She was furious and cursed me. I would have the face of a troll until a girl declared her love for me, the ugly creature, without knowing the truth of who I was."

"David … of course, David. David was the name of the boy who disappeared. Maria that is Prince David … well actually, you're King David now aren't you? Maria, that's King David you want to marry." The king was beside himself with joy. His daughter had finally found a husband, a husband he could totally approve of. And joy of joys, there would be grandchildren.

The news spread like wildfire through the little kingdom and beyond in the whole of David's realm: King David who had gone missing when still in his teens was back. All thanks to Princess Maria who would be his wife.

Because Maria and David insisted, Florian stayed until David had been crowned king of his country and Maria had become his wife. While the two countries were celebrating the wedding of their king and princess, Florian took his bags, making sure the lid on the new pot of raspberry jam was securely fastened, and left. At the gate to the country the bride and groom were waiting.

"You didn't think we'd let you go without saying goodbye, did you?" asked King David.

"We owe you our happiness," said Queen Maria.

They wished him luck and waved him out.

Maria's father abdicated making David and Maria king and queen of his kingdom as well. Because Maria's country was right in the middle of David's they made the tiny kingdom the capital of their united realm. It was a prosperous, peaceful place and the old king had still many years in which to play with his grandchildren.

But this is the story of prince Florian and he was looking for a bride.

ooOOoo


	9. Chapter 7-1

**Author's note: As always thank you to reviewers lahays711 and jimli, to followers Ebony Starstorm and M M Forever and to zetie for following and favouriting.**

Here is the first part of the next chapter in Florians quest to find a bride. Enjoy.  


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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**7.1**

Florian walked from one place to the next rather aimlessly. Just as his father had said, there were plenty of princesses. Unfortunately a lot of them were still very much under age; a fair proportion were already married; others had characters that didn't quite agree with Florian and some weren't interested in marrying, or at least not in marrying a prince from a small, insignificant country. Here and there Florian met princesses who were very eager to get married, but Florian objected to being seen as a last resort.

One morning Florian smelled something different in the air; the scent of the sea. When he saw a boy herding cattle he asked what country he was in. The boy looked at him with suspicion but not seeing anything dangerous told him the name of the country. Florian thanked the boy. For the first time in quite a while he had a goal: a visit to the crown prince, a good friend from Florian's early teens. As Prince Eric had no sisters this visit was something Florian did to please himself.

Just as he reached the palace a young man on horseback came out of the arched entrance to its grounds. He quickly glanced at the dusty traveller and rode on. He had only gone a short distance when he stopped and turned back.

"Florian? Florian! It is you!"

"Hello, Eric. I was in the neighbourhood, so I thought I'd stop by."

Prince Eric jumped off his horse and embraced his travel stained friend.

"I'm glad you came. It's been a long time. What have you been doing with yourself and how is it that you're here, so far from your country?"

"Looking for a princess," answered Florian. "My parents, well my father mostly, want me to get married."

"Ah, yes. The duty to take care there's a next generation. I'm lucky I don't have to look anymore. Everything is being prepared for my marriage to the girl who saved my life."

"A princess saved your life?"

"She's no princess. But my parents don't care. She saved me from drowning and that was all the recommendation they needed."

Prince Eric escorted Florian back to the palace and had a room prepared for him. Florian cleaned up, put some fresh clothes on and went down to join his friend who introduced him to the family.

"Everyone, this is my friend Prince Florian. Florian, this is my father King Albert and my mother Queen Gracia." Eric pointed at two tall, regal looking people who had a friendly smile for Florian.

"That is my fiancée, Lady Elena, who saved my life," said Eric indicating a blond, blue-eyed girl. Florian thought she was pretty, just like so many blond, blue-eyed princesses he had seen. He thought they all got their looks from a manual on how to be a beautiful princess. Not a grain of individuality between them. This one looked more artificial than any he'd seen; just too perfect. Obviously Eric did like that sort of girl. To Florian the second girl looked much more interesting. From a pale face, framed by dark hair, two sad sea-green eyes were looking at him. Her hair didn't look quite black; it seemed to have more than a hint of indigo to it.

"That is Nikki," Florian heard Eric say. "We took her in and are looking after her. The poor girl can't speak and has no family. She's a sweet girl and she likes to entertain us with her dancing. You'll see it later this evening."

Florian an Eric talked a bit with the family then went for a tour of the grounds. They were back for dinner and afterwards Nikki danced for them although Florian had the impression she danced only for his friend.

Early next morning when Florian woke up it was still dark. After some hesitation he made up his mind to walk to the seaside and see the sun come up over the water. The sky just started to lighten when he reached the beach. Someone was already sitting on a boulder near the water; Nikki. Her dark hair looked even more indigo in the early light than it had done the previous day. He walked up to her very quietly. When he had nearly reached her she whipped round to him. At the same time something disappeared with a splash in the water.

"Hello," Florian said. "Have you come out for the sunrise as well?"

She shook her head and pointed to the sea.

"Ah, you've come for the sea." A nod. "You like the sea, do you?" Another nod and so much sadness in her eyes that it slapped Florian in the face. "You're sad," Florian said. "The sea makes you sad." She shook her head vehemently but at the same time tears were running down her face. There was something very strange about this girl and Florian wanted to find out what it was. Eric had invited him to stay until the wedding. He hoped it would give him enough time to unravel the mystery that surrounded Nikki.

For days, whenever he wasn't away with Eric, Florian studied Nikki, following her unobtrusively – he didn't want to be thought of as a stalker – and observing what she did, what she looked at and more importantly whom she looked at. Sometimes he talked to her where he would ask questions that could be answered with nodding or shaking the head.

The wedding was only days away when Florian went out again early in the morning to meet Nikki on the beach. Of course she didn't know this and Florian went extra silently towards the place where she sat. He approached her so silently that he could see the shape that disappeared under the water: a head with hair that was even more distinctly blue than Nikki's.

Florian noticed that Nikki was nervous. He realised it could well be because of what he might have seen. The sun just started to rise, so he sat down next to the girl en enjoyed the spectacle that coloured the sea in purples, pinks, reds, oranges and yellows. The early sunlight was warming them and all around them was quiet and peaceful. Florian reluctantly broke the companionship of silence. He had to because he needed some answers.

"Not long now until the wedding." No reaction.

"I heard you will be the bridesmaid." Still no reaction, except a tear that hung on her long lashes.

"You're not looking forward to the wedding." A shaking of her head.

"It is only right and proper that Eric marries the girl, who saved him from drowning, isn't it?" She shook her head, then nodded and then beat her chest with both fists while crying silent tears. Florian realised she would have been howling if she could have made a sound. There was only one way to explain her actions.

He put his arm around the sobbing girl. "Did you save him, Nikki?"

A shock went through the girl's body. Her arms went limp. With her head on his shoulder she nodded faintly.

"Nikki, I will help you if I can but you must give me all the information I need. Just answer my questions with a nod or a shake. Could you talk when you saved Eric?" She nodded.

"Did Eric hear you speak?" A shake of the head.

"Eric was unconscious when you saved him." First she nodded, then she shook her head and finally she shrugged her shoulders.

"So he might have been, at least some of the time. Where did you find Eric when you rescued him?" She pointed at the sea.

"Were you out there on a boat?" Her shoulders sagged as she shook her head.

He remembered something Eric had told him one day and the blue-haired head he'd seen disappearing completed the picture.

"Do you know where I met Eric? At a silly camp to teach nobles and princes how to fight. Neither of us was very good that's why our fathers had sent us. We were the only ones who didn't really enjoy it. There were others as bad at fighting as we were, but they wanted to fight. We spent a lot of time together, talking about our countries. I remember one day Eric told me that his country was visited by merpeople but I didn't believe him." She sat up her face turned to Florian. "Am I right in thinking you are in fact a mermaid?" She nodded vigorously.

"You've got legs now instead of a tail and you can't talk. Has the one something to do with the other?" She nodded again. Hope was shining in her eyes.

"Well, I know some things now and can guess more. I'll do my best Nikki but I can't make Eric fall in love with you. You know that, don't you?" She embraced him and kissed him on the cheek.

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To be continued ...


	10. Chapter 7-2

**Authors Note: welcome to new follower Marianne 16 and thanks to reviewers M M Forever and Jimli.**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**7.2**

The first thing Florian did was go to the place where Eric had been rescued and where he had met Elena. On one of their rides Eric had pointed out the convent and girls' school where Elena had stayed when she had rescued him.

Florian went up to the convent, rang the bell and asked the nun-doorkeeper if he could see the Mother-Superior. Ten minutes later the door was opened for him and he was let into the office of a very tall, very thin, very severe looking nun.

"What do you want, Sir? We don't normally receive males here."

"I have some questions about Lady Elena who went to school here," Florian said.

"We haven't got and never had a Lady Elena in our school," was the answer.

"You must have. She's going to marry my friend, Prince Eric."

"I'm sure you must be mistaken, Sir."

"I'm sure I'm b … not mistaken," said Florian angrily, only just managing to swallow the swear words.

"It's all right, Sister Bernarda," a gentle voice behind Florian said. "I'll take over from here."

Florian turned around and saw a nun who was the complete opposite of the imposing Sister Bernarda. This nun was small, plump and had a sweet smiling face. As soon as Sister Bernarda was gone the new arrival said, "Excuse me for the subterfuge. Sister Bernarda is my secretary, a very good one as well. She's also good for getting rid of unwanted visitors. But what you said made me think this could be important. I'm Sister Maria-Clara, Mother-Superior of this order. You said Prince Eric is about to be married to a Lady Elena who apparently went to school here?"

"Yes. She's the one who rescued him from drowning."

"I see. I'm afraid Sister Bernarda is right. There never was a Lady Elena at our school and the girl who saved the prince is still here. Shall I fetch her?"

"Please do."

Sister Maria-Clara went out and returned shortly after with a young novice. Florian couldn't see her hair because it was covered but the face was the same. Or perhaps not quite. This face was real, not so incredibly perfect. It also had a warm, friendly smile that reached the eyes, something Florian had missed with his friend's fiancée.

"You are the girl who saved Prince Eric?"

"Actually I only found him. He must have been washed on the shore by the waves. He thought I had saved him and he wanted to marry me but I declined. I have chosen my path and marriage is not part of that path."

"Thank you, Miss … Sister," Florian said, not sure how to address the girl. "This Lady Elena looks like you and I fear she has used that likeness to entrap Eric. I have to tell him that the woman he wants to marry is not the real bride. That's going to be a fun conversation." Florian sighed.

When the young novice was gone Sister Maria-Clara said, "I'm sorry this is such bad news. Is there anything I can do to help?"

"Oh, yes," said Florian with more than a touch of sarcasm. "A book on mermaid lore would be most welcome."

"We've got more than one," was the surprising answer. The Mother-Superior went to give her secretary a quick order and came back immediately. "Do you think a mermaid is involved?" she asked Florian.

He wasn't sure he could tell the whole truth so he just answered, "Perhaps."

The secretary came back with a stack of books that Florian could search through. Sister Maria-Clara showed him a little broom cupboard of a room next to her office. It was quiet there and he wouldn't disturb the normal running of the convent. Florian was pleased that he could get started immediately. Unfortunately he couldn't find much that was of use to him. The first book had mermaids down as a kind of sea mammal without conscious thought. "These manatees and dugongs are also called sea cows," it said, "and the fevered, rum soaked brains of lonely sailors saw them as women." Florian knew that was wrong for a start. Another author described mermaids as heartless temptresses who lured unsuspecting seamen to their deaths. Florian didn't thing Nikki was either heartless or a temptress, and she had saved Eric, not killed him. So that book went on the 'useless' pile which grew and grew as he looked through book after book. Two books defined mermaids as animals. In the rest they were invariably described as mean, soulless, unkind, cruel, coldblooded, pitiless, unfeeling denizens of hell who happened to live in the sea. Nothing of what he read resembled Nikki in the slightest. As he closed the last book with a sigh sister Maria-Clara came in with some bread and cheese, an apple and a glass of milk.

"I've brought you something to eat," she said. "It is past lunchtime and I thought you might be hungry."

Until then Florian hadn't even thought of food but seeing the goodies on the tray he suddenly realised that he did feel peckish. "Thank you," he said. "That is very kind of you."

While Florian tucked into the food, Sister Maria-Clara looked at the discarded books.

"You didn't find anything useful." It was a statement, not a question. After a moment's hesitations she continued, "There is one book I haven't shown you yet. It was written by a man who claimed he had lived under the water with the merpeople. Nobody believed him of course, but I have his manuscript. You can have a look at it if you think it might be useful."

"Please, I'd love to see it," said Florian. "If the man was mad it can only be as useless as the other things I've read. If he wasn't mad then it could perhaps give me the answers I need."

"Good," said Sister Maria-Clara. She went into her office and Florian could hear a lock being turned. The rustling noise told of papers being moved. There was some impatient mumbling and then a triumphant "Ah!" Shortly after the nun came back and gave him a stack of papers, tied together with string.

When he had finished his frugal lunch Florian opened the string and started reading. Soon he became totally absorbed in what he read. This was what he'd been looking for. He was sure the man had not been mad but had really lived under the sea for a time. Florian took notes of some things he needed to ask Nikki. When he'd finished reading, he went into Sister Maria-Clara's office and returned the manuscript to her saying, "Thank you for lending me this manuscript. It was a great help."

"You found what you needed then?" she asked and he noticed she didn't query the content of the papers.

"You don't think the man was mad either," Florian remarked. Then, still not willing to tell everything, he added, "I fear there is an Evil involved in this."

"An Evil? And an Evil that has taken the semblance of one of my girls?"

Florian nodded.

"I wish you good luck when taking on this evil," said Sister Maria-Clara "I hope you will be able to save your friend."

"I hope so too," answered Florian. "I have to go now and try and set this thing right."

First of all Florian went to talk to Nikki. He was sure he would find her sitting by the sea. When he saw her he knew what writers meant when they called someone 'a little heap of misery'.

He sat down next to her, put his arm around her and said, "Nikki, I need to ask you some more questions. I've read a book written by a man who lived with your people. Do you know of him".

She nodded. Florian realised he now knew all the answers but decided to ask his questions anyway, just in case the man had exaggerated. When Nikki had answered them by nodding or shaking her head, Florian said, "That's all I need to know. Now I have to talk to Eric."

He went in search of his friend, thinking all the while, "That's going to be fun."

He found Eric at the stables, getting ready for a ride and as he was still in riding gear, Florian decided to accompany him. They rode a fair distance without speaking a word, deeply immersed in their thoughts. After traversing a wide stretch of dunes they arrived on a deserted beach. They put a nosebag on the horses and sat down in the sand. While Florian was contemplating how to broach the subject that occupied him all the time, Eric started talking.

"Florian, I fear I'm getting cold feet about my marriage to Elena. I don't know what it is but she seems different to what I thought she would be. I realise she was the one who suggested to take in Nikki but I don't know if that was a kindness."

"What makes you think that?" Florian asked. He hoped he wouldn't have to tell Eric anything.

"Perhaps I'm wrong but sometimes I think there is pain in Nikki's eyes when she dances and Elena keeps asking her again and again to dance more, every evening. The girl doesn't get a chance to sit down." He shrugged his shoulders. "Perhaps I just don't want to give up my freedom yet."

"Perhaps Lady Elena is not the right girl," Florian suggested.

"But she saved my life. She saved me from drowning. I owe her my existence."

"That's a reason to be thankful but is it a good enough reason to marry? And did she really save you? Can you remember how she saved you?"

"Well, she … I … She was the first person I saw when I opened my eyes."

"Doesn't follow that she saved you. Perhaps she just found you on the beach."

"She did save me. She told me so herself."

"I see. You opened your eyes and this girl says 'Hi, I just saved you from drowning. Marry me now'."

"Of course not. I said I wanted to marry her but she said no. She just changed her mind afterwards."

"Bit fickle, isn't she?"

Eric jumped up. "This is my future wife you're talking about."

"Eric, sit down. You were the one who said she doesn't seem to be the same girl. Do you know what you should do? First go to that convent school were the girl came from and ask about her; then try to remember how you got to be on that beach when your boat sank out on the sea. How far were you away from the beach anyway?"

Eric sat down again. "You may be right. Perhaps I should go to the convent and ask them what they know about her. She hasn't got any family, you see."

"Surprise, surprise."

"What?"

"Nothing, my friend, I was just mumbling to myself. Two girls in your life and neither have family. What a coincidence. Just make sure you go to that convent before you get married. You need to be sure about the girl you want to make your wife and future queen of your country. I've a feeling that a life filled with regret could be extremely long." Then he added. "I'll do my best to keep you from doing something stupid, just like I used to do when we were in our teens."

Eric laughed. "Yes, you were very good at that back then … providing you weren't doing something even more stupid."

Both young men were laughing now and reminisced about the time when they had met as two weedy youngsters who thought fighting should be done very sparingly, if at all.

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To be continued ...


	11. Chapter 7-3

******Author's Note: As always my thanks for the reviews to a guest, Jimli and Caroline Lily-ann Youla; welcome to new followers Moonlit Steps and Lea Rose and thanks to Lea Rose, geiarger11 and jellybabies12345678910 for favouriting.**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**7.3**

That evening Eric went to his parents' room and told them about his doubts and what he planned to do.

"I don't see the point," his father said. "Everyone has last minute jitters before their wedding day. It is after all a big step."

"Precisely, father, and I want to be absolutely sure I take the right step."

"As long as you're back in time for your wedding. I'm not postponing anything, understood?"

The queen put her hand on her husband's arm. "Eric has to marry the right girl, Albert," she said.

"I'll be back in time for the wedding," Eric vowed. "And I'll marry the right girl." Then he left his parents' room.

"He resembles you so much," Queen Gracia said to her husband, "Especially when it comes to getting married. I believe you left two girls at the altar before you finally married me."

"That was entirely different," mumbled King Albert but he realised only too well that his wife was right.

In his room Eric was waiting until everyone slept. He attempted to recall what had happened exactly the day he had been rescued. He remembered the terrible storm, more terrible than any before or since. He had been on his private yacht, returning home from a trip abroad when the rain had started. The wind had suddenly changed direction and had drastically increased in strength. Before long they had been fighting the tempest. He had been doing what he could to help when he had been swept overboard by a huge wave. He had tried to swim for the yacht but had not seen it anymore. At the time he had presumed it had gone down. He had been alone, way out in the sea, trying to keep his head above water but eventually exhaustion had overtaken him and he'd started sinking down into the deep. He had often tried to remember what had happened between the moment he sank and the moment he woke up on the beach, without success. Sometimes he thought he was on the verge of recollection but the flicker of memory he nearly caught was always just out of his reach.

It was still dark when Eric set off. Nobody was awake yet. He wanted to be away before Elena woke up. If she saw him leave she would want to tag along. She was rather clingy, he thought. Even when he'd been to the bathroom she would be there in the corridor when he came out again. Perhaps that's what caused his doubt about the wedding.

It was far too early when he arrived at his destination so he walked about, back and forth until it was a more decent time to go to the convent. He rang the bell. Because of the early hour the nun at the door only looked through the spyhole in the door. Seeing yet again a man at the door, she gathered her skirts together and ran to the office of Mother-Superior and barged in without knocking.

"There's another man at the gate," she cried out, consternation oozing from every pore of her body.

"Calm down, Sister Alice. Ask the gentleman who he is. If his name is Eric or Prince Eric, show him in, if not, ask him what he wants from us."

Not long afterwards Eric was shown in.

"Thank you for seeing me, Mother-Superior," he said. "I apologise for coming here so early, but it is important. I'll be getting married soon and I need you to tell me what you know about Lady Elena, the woman I'm about to wed."

"I expected you to come. Did your friend tell you?" Seeing the stunned look of Eric she added, "Prince Florian is your friend, isn't he? He did tell you, didn't he?"

"He told me to come here and ask about Lady Elena, but nothing else. What should he have told me?"

"Perhaps it is better that you see for yourself. Wait a moment."

For the second time in two days the young novice was taken away from her work to see a young man. As soon as he saw her Prince Eric cried out, "Elena!"

"I'm very sorry, Your Highness, but my name is Sister Martha and before it was Cecily not Elena," the girl said.

Eric was confused. "Who's Elena then?" he asked. "Is she your twin?"

"No, Sir. I have no family of any kind; neither parents and siblings, nor aunts, uncles or cousins."

"Another one without family," Eric couldn't help thinking.

"I don't know who this lady you talk about is," the girl continued, "but she's not family."

"She lied to me." Consternation was audible in Eric's voice. "The woman I want to make my wife lied to me. What am I going to do?"

Sister Maria-Clara motioned to the novice she could go. Then she took the manuscript on mermaids and gave it to Eric saying, "Your friend found this useful. Perhaps you should look at it as well."

Still shaken about what he'd seen and heard Eric accepted the pages and followed Sister Maria-Clara to the quiet little office. He started reading the papers he'd been given. After half an hour he realised he'd been reading and re-reading the same sentence over and over again without it making sense, purely because he couldn't concentrate. He started again but soon gave up. With the manuscript in his hand he went to see Sister Maria-Clara.

"Thank you for letting me read this, Mother-Superior, but it's no use. I can't keep my mind on it. I can only think that my fiancée lied to me. Now I've started wondering. Is she a fraud? Do I even know her? Did I ever really love her?" Eric said with a sigh.

Sister Maria-Clara really felt sorry for the troubled young man. She knew what he was thinking. Had gratitude clouded his judgement? Had he confused it with love? She would pray for him and his friend who had said Evil was involved.

"Go to your friend," she advised Eric. "I think he has all the answers. I think the reason he sent you here is so you would see Sister Martha. Listen to what he says. You know now that he speaks the truth. He wants you to make the right decision and be happy."

Eric nodded and left. He arrived later than normal in the breakfast room and apologised, saying he'd woken up early, had gone for a walk and had lost track of time. Everyone accepted his apology except Elena.

"Why didn't you wake me up?" she asked. "We could have gone for a walk together."

Eric pretended he hadn't heard it. Very casually he addressed Florian. "In two days' time is the wedding and you said you will leave immediately afterwards. Why don't we ride out for the day and I'll show you some more of our country. You still have a lot to see."

"Splendid. I'd love to see those long flat stretches where you used to race your horse. You always bragged about those but I haven't seen any yet."

"I'll show you, I'll race you and I'll win," Eric answered.

Elena was whining, "Do you have to? Can't you stay home?"

"I have a guest I need to entertain. It is part of the duties of royals, Elena," said Eric getting up.

Florian followed his friend to the stables. The horses were saddled already, just as Eric had requested on his return from the convent. They had to pass by the palace first. Eric's parents, Elena and Nikki stood outside. At a sign of the queen Florian and Eric halted their horses. She went to her son.

"If you're going to be away all day, you might want something to eat," she said as she handed him a linen sack.

Eric thanked his mother. He saw that Nikki took a similar bag to Florian. She nodded and shook her head a few times at something Florian said, then she smiled. Eric was surprised. Florian had a conversation with Nikki. He hadn't even tried and wondered why not. Then he remembered. Elena had told him Nikki was a simpleton who danced but could do little else, least of all have a conversation. Eric felt sad; it could have been him talking to Nikki. He didn't know why he felt so sad. He'd never felt the urge to talk to the girl and Nikki and Florian were both free to laugh at and talk to whomever they wanted.

While he'd been observing his friend and the young girl he hadn't paid any attention to the movements of his horse. Without realising it he had directed it closer to Elena. His horse suddenly acted skittish. While he tried to calm it down Elena shrieked, "Why do you come this close? You know I'm afraid of these beasts. You can't love me if you do this. You should have gotten rid of it already instead of continually exposing me to that animal."

Eric mumbled, "Sorry," and moved his horse away. Florian had seen everything and thought the horse had seemed more afraid of Elena than the other way round. While Florian had noticed Elena's behaviour, Eric saw Nikki caressing the soft nose of Florian's horse. He knew his friend was looking for a bride and the idea it could be Nikki bothered him.

Finally they set off. At first they were both quiet but Florian wanted to know about Eric's country and asked about produce, economy, trade and anything else he thought of. Eric relaxed and told his friend all he wanted to know and in turn asked questions about Florian's country. Near lunchtime they found a secluded spot with a lake. It was surrounded by tall straight trees and screened from the road by bushes. Underneath the trees grew soft grass. They sat down near the water to have their lunch and soon Eric broached the subject that occupied his mind nearly constantly.

"I was at the convent this morning and I saw Sister Martha." Silence, Florian didn't know what to answer.

Eric continued, "Mother-Superior gave me these papers to read but I couldn't. She said you could tell me because you had read them. What were they about Florian, tell me, please."

After a short hesitation to order his thoughts, Florian started telling his friend about the man who'd written the manuscript and how he and Sister Maria-Clara believed it to be genuine.

"The man related a lot of sad stories about merpeople, generally mermaids, who fell in love with humans. Mostly the love remains unfulfilled; often the stories ended with their deaths."

Eric said he couldn't care much about females who lured men to their death.

"That's where everyone is wrong. These sirens are not mermaids. They are in fact sea-witches who take on the form of mermaids. The man had seen one from a great distance and described it. They are truly evil beings; blobs that have no form themselves but copy an existing form. Mostly they duplicate mermaids, but they can replicate any form if they have an example to work from. The only way to tell the difference is the perfection of the replica; they never have flaws."

Florian stopped, but apparently his friend hadn't made the link yet. He continued, "Sometimes a mermaid falls so deeply in love with a man she's prepared to become human. This is not the same as a sea-witch copying a human. A mermaid is humanoid; she only has to split her tail in two to make legs. Of course it's not as simple as that. It's a painful process and only a sea-witch can do it. In exchange the witch requires something that belongs to the mermaid, her hair, her eyesight, her hearing or her voice."

Another pause to allow things to sink in but there was still no reaction from Eric. Florian wondered if his friend was thick or thought it all so much nonsense. Nevertheless he went on, "A mermaid who has acquired her legs can live on land but every step she takes will be painful. She will feel the pain of the rending of her tail over and over again. If she wins the heart of the man she loves and marries him, she becomes truly human. She can walk and run and dance without pain and what she gave in payment will be restored to her. If on the other hand her love marries another woman, the poor mermaid dies and becomes sea-foam and the sea-witch keeps her prize. That's why sea-witches do everything in their power to destroy any chance the mermaid has to win her sweetheart's love"

There was nothing more to tell. Eric just had to join the dots but he seemed to be staring into a dark and terrifying void.

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To be continued ...


	12. Chapter 7-4

**Author's note: Welcome to new follower punkhorse and to Jimli and Caroline Lily-ann Youla, thank you for the reviews.  
**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**7.4**

Florian waited for a reaction from his friend. When it came it was not what he had expected.

"I don't think I want to marry Elena," Eric finally said. "She's whiney, she's needy, she's clingy. If it wasn't for her fear of horses she'd be here right now. I don't think I can cope with a wife like that. On top of that she lied to me about rescuing me. I don't even know who she is."

"Have you actually heard I word of what I told you?" Florian asked.

"What? Sorry, not since you mentioned mermaids. I've been too deep in thought to hear what you said. Let's go."

Eric quickly jumped up and took a step back. He stumbled over an uneven patch and was propelled backward into the lake by his speed. When his friend didn't come to the surface immediately, Florian dived in after him. Both came up and broke the surface of the lake at the same time.

"It was her," was the first thing Eric cried out when he saw his friend next to him. "She saved me. I know. I remember her face."

Florian saw the moment truth dawned on his friend. Eric stopped treading water and went down again. Quickly Florian grabbed him and dragged him to the bank of the lake and out of it. While his friend sat coughing and spluttering he made a fire, an art he'd perfected during his travels, and sat Eric down next to it.

"She's a mermaid! How can she be a mermaid? She's got legs!" Eric was totally confused.

"Well, I'll just have to explain everything to you again, won't I," said Florian and for the second time he told Eric how a mermaid could manage to walk like a human.

This time Eric understood it all, proving he was not an utter idiot.

"Poor Nikki, she has gone through so much pain for me. And Elena only made it worse, asking her to dance all the time. But she knew what she did, didn't she? She hurt Nikki on purpose. Ye gods, I'm glad I've got a good excuse not to marry her." Relief was tangible in Eric's voice.

"I don't know what she'll do when you tell her, Eric. Elena is a witch and could be quite dangerous when thwarted. Nobody knows much about sea-witches. The merpeople know them as very powerful witches but nobody knows what their power is out of the water. The same, less, more, nobody knows. And what are you going to do about Nikki?"

"Marry her … if she still wants me. When I saw you with Nikki it felt as if I was losing the most precious thing in my life. I was even jealous of the way she could 'talk' to you. I've been sitting here thinking about that and realising that I don't have brotherly feelings for her as I thought. I love her and not Elena. But you two seem to get on extremely well so I wondered …"

"We're friends. I found out who she was and promised to help her. Eric, I think you have to marry Nikki immediately and secretly. Don't let anybody know, least of all that witch. "

"I doubt my father will appreciate a secret marriage. A lot of preparation has gone into the feast."

"You can't marry two girls, Eric, but nobody says you can't marry the same girl twice. And Elena won't be able to stop you walking down the aisle with Nikki if you're already wed. Marry Nikki tomorrow, secretly, then tell your father there's been a change of bride. Nikki will be human and I doubt your parents will mind very much when you tell them the truth about who actually rescued you."

Eric saw the brilliancy of Florian's idea and together they planned the secret wedding. When they'd organised everything they could, they returned to the palace and arrived just in time for the evening meal. Pretending to be tired from riding all day, Eric and Florian went to bed early.

Just like the previous morning, Eric left the palace while everyone was still asleep. A few hours later Florian got up and found Nikki sitting near the sea as usual. He walked up to her and discovered why she was so early every day. Another mermaid was hiding out of sight, talking to Nikki.

"The wedding is tomorrow, Asherah," the mermaid said. "Tomorrow is the last day I'll see you my sister. You know you'll turn to sea-foam the night after the marriage. I wanted to ask the sea-witch for a way to save you, but she can't be found."

Florian didn't know if mermaids could cry, but this one sounded very much as if she did.

"You can't find her because she's here," he said.

The mermaid disappeared under the water but immediately popped up again. "Here?" she asked. Nikki's eyes questioned him as well.

"Elena is the sea-witch."

Both mermaids gasped. "She'll never allow Asherah to marry Prince Eric."

"Your name is Asherah? Well Asherah, you **_are_** going to marry Eric. Today, secretly. And tomorrow you'll be the bride in the big wedding that is planned."

"Asherah that is wonderfull!" the mermaid in the water cried out. "You'll need her full name to make the marriage binding according to our customs," she continued. "It is Asherah Nereida, daughter of King Triton and Queen Darya, rulers of all the seas. I'll tell them the good news." She disappeared.

Florian now told Nikki/Asherah how everything had come about and what the plan was. She embraced him just as Elena looked out of the window. Hand in hand they walked away. Elena laughed. It was an unpleasant laugh and matched what she thought, "You won't outrun your faith by transferring your desires to another man. Tomorrow night you die; sea-foam, tossed about by wind and waves. And I will be queen."

While Elena congratulated herself on her victory, Florian and Asherah arrived at the convent. They went inside. Florian was taken to the chapel where Eric was already waiting. Sister Maria-Clara and Sister Bernarda dressed Asherah in a simple white dress, wove a daisy chain through her dark hair and gave her a bouquet of big oxeye daisies. When they arrived at the chapel the choir started singing. All the nuns and all girls of the convent school were there. It was a simple service. The bride could only nod her assent but did it vigorously. As soon as they were pronounced man and wife Ashera could talk and the pain was gone from her legs. Florian left the newlyweds to spend the day together, staying well away from the palace. In the evening he returned with Asherah and Eric arrived on his own quite a bit later. Elena moaned and whined that Eric had left her alone all day. Only Eric's assurance he'd been busy for the big wedding the following day more or less satisfied her.

Early the following day, the wedding day, Eric and Asherah went to the beach where her parents were waiting. King Triton approved of his daughter's husband and gave them his blessing; Queen Darya cried but was happy that her daughter's dream had come true after all.

Afterwards Eric introduced Asherah to his parents and told them about the secret wedding and the plan to do it over again, very officially. They agreed. Queen Gracia especially was thrilled with the change of bride.

"I didn't want to interfere with your choice," she said, "but I found it difficult to be nice to Elena. I might have become a mother-in-law from hell."

Eric wanted to tell Elena about the change of plans but she didn't come to the breakfast table and could not be found. Not that Eric minded. He wasn't exactly looking forward to the confrontation with a sea-witch.

Soon it was time for the wedding. The bells in the cathedral tower started to ring. Florian had been asked to take the place of Asherah's father. He gladly accepted and looked as proud as King Triton would have been. Eric stood at the altar dressed in cream uniform. He thought how sweet and pretty Asherah had looked as a bride the day before but when he saw her walking down the aisle he realised she was not just a pretty girl. He was marrying a princess, a queen. She was still dressed in the simple gown of the previous day but over it she wore a trailing cape in lace covered in minute pearls like dewdrops. In her hair she had a platinum, diamond and pearl encrusted tiara. In her hands she carried a bouquet of exotic white orchids. All three were presents from her family, obtained by river sprites in faraway places and carried over the sea by mermen and mermaids. When she stood next to Eric he couldn't keep his eyes off her. The service started.

"Dearly beloved, we are gathered here today to celebrate the union of Prince Eric Thomas, son of King Albert and Queen Gracia with Princess Asherah Nereida, daughter of King Triton and Queen Darya, rulers of all the seas."

This time Asherah didn't have to nod. Both bride and groom made their vows in clear, steady voices. The feast afterwards was as splendid as King Albert had wanted it and he and his wife beamed when they were congratulated by all and sundry on their son's excellent choice. Later there was a ball and Asherah danced and danced and never felt a twinge of pain. At midnight there was a spectacular firework display. Even the bride's parents had come to the surface to see it.

Early in the morning the young couple were ready to go on a honeymoon and Florian too had his backpack ready to go.

"Thank you for everything, Florian," Asherah said and kissed him on the cheek.

"You'll always be welcome here, my friend," added Eric. "Without you I would have married the wrong girl and my country would have been ruled by a witch."

"I hope to see you two in my country one day; perhaps for my wedding. Oh, and you don't have to worry about Elena."

He explained how the previous day after the wedding he'd passed Elena's room and had heard one of the maids say, "I don't know what she did in her room before she left but the whole bed is full of horrible black scum."

He'd gone in to have a look and had seen a black substance, sticky like tar, on the pillow and along the bed; an oval stain with grey foam along the edges. He had suggested to the maids to burn the lot and they had agreed with him.

"So you see," Florian ended, "it seems very likely that the sea-witch died and became a polluted kind of sea-scum when she couldn't marry the man she wanted to take from the mermaid."

They said their last goodbye and went their separate ways. Eric and Asherah enjoyed their honeymoon. When they returned Queen Gracia told them Elena had still not been seen. From Asherah's sister they learned that she hadn't returned to the sea either. They concluded that she had indeed suffered the fate she had wished on Asherah. Eric and Asherah were relieved at the news. They would not have to worry about a possible revenge. Nothing could now cloud their happiness.

Thanks to the patronage of Prince Eric and Sister Maria-Clara the manuscript on mermaids and mermen was published with an introduction by Asherah herself and became the most respected source of knowledge on the inhabitants of the sea. The author was completely exonerated but he didn't care either way. He lived happily and quietly in a cottage by the sea where his friends among the merpeople often visited him.

Asherah had fallen in love with Eric for his smile and good looks Eric had really married her because she was the pretty girl who had saved him. Over time their love grew as it found more solid ground to thrive in. Eric always thanked his lucky stars that had brought Florian to his country in time to prevent him from making a terrible mistake.

But this is the story of prince Florian and he was looking for a bride.

ooOOoo


	13. Chapter 8-1

******Author's note: As always thank you to Caroline Lily-ann Youla, Jimli, and M M Forever for the reviews.**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**8.1**

Florian travelled through several countries. None had suitable princesses. They were too old, they were too young, they were already spoken for or they were married already. And some only had princes.

One day he came to a village. It was nothing special. It was not particularly small or large, not particularly ugly or pretty and not particularly noisy or quiet. Its people were not particularly stupid or clever, nor were they particularly friendly or unfriendly. It was the most average of villages imaginable. It was just past noon and Florian was glad to see the village had an inn. For once Florian was in luck for the one thing this village could boast about was its inn and the people who ran it, an excellent cook and his friendly wife.

Florian went inside and when the landlady appeared, asked her what she had to offer.

"We have excellent wines, sir, but our beers are the best anywhere. I would recommend one of our dark beers."

"That sounds nice. And anything to eat?"

She looked a bit worried. "We've had to reduce our menu somewhat, due to shortages." Then her face lit up again. "But if you don't mind simple food, I can offer you an excellent hot-pot. Lots of good root vegetables and cabbage and a bit of meat."

"A bit of meat?"

"Yes, whatever we can get. A bit of pork, beef, even duck or wild rabbit."

"Rat?"

She looked angry now. "We don't serve that sort of thing here."

"Great! Bring me some of your stew then."

She went to the kitchen, visibly annoyed. When she came back with the beer and the stew she put the stein and the dish on the table with two distinct bangs, "Bang! Bang!"

Florian grabbed her arm before she could go and apologised. "I didn't mean to insult your food. I have been away from home for a long time. Compared to some of the food that's been put in front of me, rat sounds quite palatable."

She saw he meant it and smiled. "I'm sorry I was rude. It's just that we have problems getting the ingredients we want to make the best food. My husband does what he can with what he gets but I know he suffers because he can't show off his skill."

Florian had let go of her arm and before he could ask anything she was gone. Some people seemed to want to come into the inn but hesitated on the threshold. Florian didn't pay any further attention. He was enjoying the stew which tasted better than anything he'd eaten in a long time, probably since the wedding of his friends.

"Excuse me." It was the landlady. She looked embarrassed that she had interrupted him. "Our mayor would like to ask you something." She pointed at a harassed looking man standing in the doorway.

"Of course, let him come. And bring a jug of whatever he likes to drink."

The mayor sat down across the table from Florian and thanked him for the drink the landlady put in front of him. He came straight to the point.

"Are you a knight errant? If you are, we have a problem you could perhaps help us with."

"Well, I'm actually looking for a princess bride. So far unsuccessfully."

The mayor hesitated a moment. Then he said, "There might be a princess. There is a castle with a moat and an incredibly high tower."

"I don't understand …"

"There is a dragon." The mayor sighed. "For over a year now we've been terrorised by a dragon. It comes at odd moments, sweeping down, killing and eating livestock, burning our crops and occasionally setting fire to a house on the outskirts of the village."

"Is that why the landlord has to make do in his cooking?"

The mayor nodded. "Sadly it is. The inn had a great reputation and that brought trade to our village, people who wanted to eat here. If their reputation goes, the village will suffer. That's why we wondered whether you were a knight errant who could kill the dragon for us."

"You mentioned a princess."

"Well," the mayor said hesitantly, "we don't know for sure. We only know where the dragon is heading afterwards. He flies to a castle that stands on a sizable hill. The castle itself is surrounded by a … a ravine really, it's so deep. The only way across is a narrow hanging bridge; only … well, it's barely passable … if at all. It doesn't look all too safe."

"There is a princess in the castle?"

"We haven't seen one, but we have seen light in the top of the tallest tower. That's where they normally lock up princesses, don't they?"

Florian nodded, then he said, "All right, I'll have a look at this dragon and its castle, but I need some more information on the area."

Visibly relieved the mayor said, "Wait, I'll get the man who discovered where the dragon went to. He can explain it better."

He went to the door and soon after returned with a young farmer. Florian asked him some questions. He and the farmer talked together for a very long time. In the end they arranged that the following morning the farmer would show Florian where the castle was.

It was a full moon, so they left before daybreak and arrived just as the sun came up from behind the castle. It looked eerie and foreboding. A black silhouette against the morning sky, abandoned, decaying. They made their way up the hill to the edge of the ravine. Steam was rising from the deep chasm that separated the castle from the surrounding area. The narrow bridge creaked and groaned as it swung in the light breeze that played with it and cut through the mist. With a roar a black shape detached itself from the bulk of the castle and flew towards the village. After an hour or so the dragon returned, landing in front of the gate and going inside. The sun had dispersed most of the mist by then except in the depths of the ravine.

"You go back to the village now," Florian told his companion. "I want to have a closer look to find a way into the castle."

The young farmer slunk away from the vicinity of the dragon's lair and was soon running home. Florian had already ascertained that crossing the bridge was tantamount to suicide. He went all around the castle, hiding behind bushes and boulders, peering into the chasm. When the fog had finally totally lifted, he could see that crossing the ravine would be no problem. Climbing down one side and up the other would be a challenge but by no means impossible. Living in a mountainous country meant that Florian had been climbing mountains from a young age. Now he was a seasoned rock climber. Most of all he had enjoyed the freedom of climbing without ropes or other aids but eventually his parents had stopped him. He was their only child, the future king and should not take such risks.

Florian was already looking forward to a climbing session. By then he had arrived at the back of the tower where the light had been seen and there he saw steps cut out in the rock going down to the bottom of the ravine.

"Bugger," he mumbled under his breath. He could not climb down now. He'd feel a prize idiot getting there the hard way when he could so easily walk down the steps. There were steps going up the other side of the chasm as well, ending opposite a door in the tower wall. "Double bugger," was his comment when he saw them. He couldn't climb down in broad daylight, so he returned to the village inn.

He walked into the common room noiselessly and heard some people talking in the booth near the door.

"Do you think he can kill a dragon? He looks more like a scribe than a knight."

"He's a prince. They all learn to fight." ("True," thought Florian.)

"Well, he _says_ he's a prince. Besides, not every prince is a good fighter." ("Also true," thought Florian.)

"He's gone to study the castle where the dragon lives, hasn't he?"

"Yes, and then he'll probably come back to get his gear and quietly sneak away, leaving us to the beast."

"No," said Florian. "It's not an enormous dragon. Not by dragon standards if you believe the stories that are being told. I think I have a reasonable chance to beat it. I'll give it my best shot anyway."

The two men had jumped up, one looking a bit sheepish.

"Eh, right, eh, when, eh, when are you going to kill it?"

"Well, it should all be sorted by tomorrow evening. Good day, gentlemen."

He sat down at his table from the previous day and when the landlady appeared he ordered an early lunch, or a late breakfast, depending how you looked at it.

Despite his bold statement, Florian wasn't that certain of success. He didn't know anything about dragons, except what he'd read and been told. He thought the best thing to do was to take the beast out when it was still sleeping or at least still very drowsy. With a combination of luck and the skills he'd acquired, whether he had liked it or not, it should be possible to bring this quest to a good end. And perhaps there would even be a bride for him in the tower.

Even though this venture could end in injury for him, or even worse, not one moment did Florian consider getting his gear and sneaking away, leaving the villagers to sort out their dragon problem themselves as one of the men had suggested he might do. He was not just Prince Florian but also a knight who had promised to render help where help was needed. And it was definitely needed here as a quick tour of the village showed him. Seeing the destruction the dragon had wrought only made Florian more determined.

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To be continued ...


	14. Chapter 8-2

**Author's Note: Welcome to new follower SomeKindOfFunny and as ever thanks to reviewers Caroline Lily-ann Youla and Jimli. **

**I had a lot of fun writing this part. Hope you have as much fun reading it.**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**8.2**

Florian slept in the afternoon, had a late evening meal and left for the castle as soon as the moon was up. He walked straight to the back of the structure. The silver moonlight reflected from the windows in the tower. The rest of the castle had dead sightless eyes. Step by step Florian descended into the ravine. The further down he went, the darker it became as the moonlight didn't reach the depths of the chasm. Carefully, in almost complete darkness he crossed to the other side and started upwards. The sun was coming up as he came out of the valley. He clambered through one of the apertures in the main building. To his surprise the whole ground floor of the castle was one enormous room in which the dragon lay sleeping, curled up with its head on its paws.

Compared to the dragons Florian had read about, this one seemed fairly small. It was not _'as big as two houses'_ or _'larger than a church'_ as some books had described them. For all that it was still bigger than the beasts with the long noses he'd seen people use in one of the exotic countries he'd visited on his quest. Elephants they had called them. This dragon was probably taller than the big bull elephant he had seen. As far as Florian was concerned that was big enough. He rushed at the beast, thinking he would cut off its head while it was asleep. Unfortunately it just woke up and Florian's sword did no more than prick it in its thigh. The dragon roared and turned its head towards Florian who just managed to jump out of the way of its fiery breath.

The beast was still sluggish from sleep so Florian went for it again with no more success than the previous time. The thing had exceptionally thick skin and it was very good at protecting its soft belly, as if it knew that was a vulnerable place. Florian tried every trick he'd read or heard about but all in vain. All he managed to do was give the dragon a quick jab with his sword and get out of the way, over and over again. To the dragon they seemed no more than pinpricks. Florian started to wonder how many of the knights who claimed to have killed a dragon had actually seen one.

"What are you doing with my dragon? Leave her alone."

At the sound of the voice the dragon started purring like an oversized cat and Florian turned round. In the doorway to the tower stood a girl with fiery red hair, her green eyes ablaze with anger.

"Put that sword down or I'll tell Twinkle to fry you."

"Twinkle?"

"Yes, my dragon."

"**_Your_** dragon?"

"Yes. Are you a simpleton? My dragon, Twinkle. Put down your sword or I'll set her on you."

Florian lowered his sword but held on to it. Was this girl mad? Did she really think she could control a dragon? He saw the girl walk up to the dragon and caress it's jaw.

"Did he upset you, Twinkle? Did the nasty man upset my little Twinkle?"

"Little? It's a dragon. It is not little and it is not a pet."

"You're an expert on dragons are you? How many have you seen?" The girl looked angry.

"You don't have to have met one to know they are dangerous. They are huge, they have fangs, they eat cows for breakfast and they destroy things. What do you think they are? Pussycats?"

"Twinkle doesn't eat cows. She's vegetarian."

"Really? Tell that to your neighbours."

"I haven't got neighbours, you dolt. That's why I live here."

"Well, your dragon thinks it's got neighbours." Florian was losing his patience with the girl.

"Twinkle is a 'she', not and 'it'!"

"Twinkle is a 'she'? I don't believe it. 'She' loves the cows of your neighbours. For 'her' the village is not far away. 'SHE' FLIES THERE!"

"That is a vicious lie. Twinkle eats vegetables every day."

"Yes. As a snack. But whenever she wants something a bit more substantial she flies to the village, has a few cows, burns a few fields, perhaps destroys a house and then she comes back to you."

"Liar! Nobody has complained to me."

"Of course not. They don't even know for sure you exist. They only know this is a dragon's lair. You don't go and complain to a dragon, do you?"

"What?"

"And I'm the simpleton? The people in the village told me what your dragon did. They asked me if I could help them and kill it. They told me it might keep a princess captive as they had seen a light in the tower."

"I'm not kept captive."

"Oh, really? I hadn't guessed. Get ready and lock up your beast. You're coming with me."

"Why would I? So you can brag you rescued me and then force me into marriage? I bet my parents set you up to this."

"I wouldn't want you if you were the last woman on earth."

"Oh!"

"I want you to go with me to the village so you can see what your vegetarian dragon has done."

"Oh, please. They're only peasants. I'll give you some money to pay for damages. It probably wasn't as serious as they let on."

Hearing the contempt in her voice Florian's patience finally snapped.

"You heartless cow. You are going to come with me and you are going to see with your own eyes what your 'little Twinkle' has done. And then you are going to apologise to every person in that village, even if I have to drag you all the way."

"Yeah? You and who else?"

They'd been talking louder and louder for some time now. The moment they started shouting at each other the dragon became restless. Florian heard it growling. He spun round and saw the dragon had gotten up and was ready to spray him with fire. He had no protection. Looking round he noticed that the girl had gone back into her tower and had closed the door. He heard the click as she locked it and her laughter getting fainter and fainter. She was going to the top of her tower, leaving him with her angry dragon. Florian turned back to the beast. His sword was useless, even if he got to the dragon in time. He didn't have a shield, the door to the tower was locked and there was nothing suitable to hide behind. Neither of the exits could be reached in time and, for the same reason, jumping out of a window was out of the question. Basically he was toast … unless … there was only one thing he could try.

"Twinkle! Bad dragon! Stop it! Sit!"

The dragon hiccupped and sat down, looking like a dog who'd been told off. Smoke curled from its nostrils, the remnant of the fire that would have killed Florian who laughed. He was learning a lot about dragons in an incredibly short time. He walked to the dragon, stroked it and scratched it behind the ears, something it liked very much. Then Florian saw a strange combination between a harness and a saddle lying in a corner . When he walked over to it the dragon's tail began to move and it made little whiney noises.

"You want to go fly, girl? Yes?"

The dragon became as excited as a dog that was promised a walk. Florian grabbed the harness and took it to the animal.

"Calm down, girl. Sit still," he said while putting on the harness. "Now I'm just going to get your mistress."

Florian picked up the rope that he'd found near the harness. He tried the door to the tower, which was locked as he had expected. Not for long though. Rummaging around Florian found some tools, probably left by previous occupants of the castle, and he forced the lock. He went into the tower climbing higher and higher until he heard something. The girl was talking to herself.

"Twinkle will probably have dealt with the idiot by now. I'm not going to be forced into any marriage. Not me."

She was sitting with her back to the entrance of the room. Quieter than a mouse Florian crept in and before she knew what was happening she was tied up.

"I don't normally like to be rough but for you I'll make an exception. My mother always said, 'If you don't listen, you'll have to feel,' and I fear it's the only way you'll take notice."

"Untie me, you caveman, you cad, you scoundrel. I'll set Twinkle on you, you rat. You rotten b…"

Florian gagged her to shut her up, threw her over his shoulder and carried her down the stairs. Then he placed her on the saddle of the dragon and got on behind her.

"Go, Twinkle," he shouted and the dragon left the building and soared up into the sky. The girl had been wriggling at first but she held herself as still as possible once they were airborne. It didn't take Florian too long to learn how to direct the dragon. He flew towards the village and landed on an empty field just outside it. He jumped down, pulled his captive out of the saddle and told the dragon to "Stay!"

When they were out of the dragon's reach he removed the gag and untied her. Then he forced the girl to see the carcasses of the cows Twinkle had burned but not eaten, the charred remains of the fields of grain and the house were the villagers were still putting out the fire.

"I know Twinkle is a sweet dragon," he said, "but this is the sort of mischief she gets up to if you let her out on her own. You have to buy proper food for her; meat and not vegetables. Otherwise one day some knight will come who's not as kind as I am."

The girl was shocked at what she saw. There were paw prints everywhere, clearly from Twinkle.

"I didn't know. I thought … I didn't mean for this to happen. What shall I do?"

"Why don't you make a deal with the villagers? You pay for the damage that has been done and you order a daily delivery of meat for Twinkle. Or haven't you got money for that?"

"Of course I do. Twinkle had a large hoard when I found her. We brought it all to the castle. And I took my dowry before I left home."

Florian took her to the inn. Then he sent for the mayor and explained the situation to him. The mayor and the girl quickly came to an agreement, especially since she was more than willing to pay for the damage. When the man had gone to spread the good news Florian asked her why she had been pretending to be a princess captured by a dragon.

"I'm Sophie, the youngest of nine princesses. When our little brother was born our parents wanted us to marry well to wealthy kings and princes who would be useful alliances. One by one my sisters were married off. When I saw the kind of men that were chosen I just wanted out. My sisters seemed happy though. They were all so excited when they met their future husbands and said I would be too when my time came. Then the youngest of my sisters got married and I knew I would be next. Father had invited no end of single men to the wedding. They scared the living daylights out of me so I ran away. Then I found Twinkle and hid in the old castle."

"Shouldn't you let your parents know you're all right? They might be worried."

"I left them a note, not to worry. I wrote that I wasn't interested in any of those bachelors. I don't think they'll worry too much. They have eight solid allies already for my brother."

"If you think so."

"I know so." After a short pause she added, "So … do you fancy coming back to the castle with me? We could have some fun flying around on Twinkle."

Florian had to admit that Princess Sophie was a pretty redhead with the most startlingly green eyes. But she had a temper to match and he wasn't at all sure a relationship with her could last long. They would probably start throwing plates at each other in a matter of weeks.

"Thanks for the invitations," he said, "but I must be getting on."

"Right." She sounded a bit disappointed. "Have a safe journey."

"Thank you," Florian replied. "Have a nice life." He got his backpack from his room, paid the landlady and left the village. On his way he passed Twinkle. He went to the dragon and gave it another scratch behind the ears.

"Look after Sophie, will you, Twinkle? She's not a bad girl, just not my sort."

From then on Princess Sophie bought meat for Twinkle in the village. The dragon didn't cause destruction anymore and as the villagers got to know her better they even let their children sit on her and fly over the village with Princess Sophie. The inn got its reputation back and Princess Sophie with her dragon Twinkle became the second attraction of the village. This brought tourists from far and wide. The village became prosperous.

One day Princess Sophie saw a man in the village she'd never seen there before. He wasn't dressed like a prince or even a knight. Later Princess Sophie saw him working in the inn looking after the stables. She rather liked him and so did Twinkle who had her own stable, a converted barn really, at the inn whenever they came on a visit. Princess Sophie often talked to the young man about the care of dragons, how he liked the village and so on. Eventually she asked him to marry her. He accepted and then admitted he'd seen her at her sister's wedding and had been looking for her ever since she'd gone missing.

"Of course," he said, "as a younger son I wouldn't have been acceptable to your parents."

Princess Sophie kissed him. "You're acceptable to me," she said. "And that's all that counts."

They got married in the village church and lived in the tower of the castle. Eventually they restored the upper floors of the rest of the castle and the bridge over the ravine. Then they started to let rooms to the tourists. Sophie had been convinced by her husband to send news of her marriage and whereabouts to her parents who were one of her first guests. They were upset that she'd let them worry for such a long time but they were pleased for her that she was doing so well.

Princess Sophie became very happy with her dragon and the husband she had chosen.

But this is the story of prince Florian and he was looking for a bride.

ooOOoo


	15. Chapter 9

**Authors note: Thanks as always to reviewers Jimli and Caroline Lily-ann Youla. Welcome to new follower Arista Everett June and thanks for reviewing.  
Welcome to Dappledpaw, and Shortie-M, and thank you for favouriting. And thanks also to Barbiegirl 22, and snapdrakon17 for putting the story on their favourites list.**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**9.**

After leaving Princess Sophie and her dragon, Florian walked and walked until he reached the Ice Plains of the North. The only reason went to a place where he was so unlikely to find humans, never mind a princess was a half-remembered story he'd heard when he was still a child; the story of a princess who was waiting in her ice-castle, sleeping until love would wake her up. After meeting a troll who was really a king, a mermaid who had legs and a girl who had a pet dragon, he reckoned everything was possible.

The first evening on the Ice Plains Florian set up his tent and spent a fairly comfortable night in it. The next morning he packed up and walked across the plains. It was strange to walk in the white, featureless world where land and sky merged. When the wind picked up around midday and the cold became more penetrating, Florian decided to set up camp early. He had barely time to unpack all necessaries when the weather changed from windy to stormy. The conditions made it difficult to put up a tent and before he could complete the job, the whole thing was picked up and carried away by the blizzard. He felt so exhausted that for a moment he wondered about just sitting down in the snow, wrapped in his blanket. Common sense prevailed and the fear of being irretrievably snowed under and freeze to death gave him the necessary push to keep walking.

A small light penetrating the whiteness seemed to beckon him so he ran towards it. He nearly ran full tilt into a wall of ice. Florian looked up at the structure. Even through the blizzard he could notice its size. Was this the ice-castle from the story? Perhaps. The light came from a window above large, ornate, double doors made out of silver. Florian knocked on the silver door and, at the same time, rang the bell set in the silver doorframe. The door opened all by itself. he went in and with a loud clang it closed behind him. Florian spun round but couldn't see anybody.

"Hello," he cried, "Is anybody here? You've got a guest."

He walked from one room to the next. They were all empty, unless you counted the benches cut out of ice along every wall. Eventually he came to a room with a structure in the middle of it.

"Like an altar," thought Florian, then corrected himself, "… or an icy four-poster bed."

Four large icicles came down from the ceiling touching the corners of a large rectangular block of ice. More icicles formed a strange sort of curtain at the back and a third of the way down the left and right side. The front was totally open and Florian could see a figure lying on the altar-bed.

"Hello," he whispered. It was echoed around the room. From all directions his voice was repeated, "Hello … hello … hello … hello …" the whisper getting fainter and fainter.

The figure on the altar stirred, stretched and sat up. It was a girl, unlike any Florian had seen on his journey.

"I see it's time to wake up from my nap," she said. Rather that's what Florian felt she said. Her voice was as strange as the girl herself. It sounded like the tinkling of crystal bells, high and breakable, in a language Florian knew he'd never heard and yet he understood every word.

The girl sat on the edge of the altar-bed and put her slippers on.

"Glass slippers!" Florian didn't realise he'd said it out loud until he heard the crystal clear voice answer in the musical language, "Yes. To be more precise, they're made of crystal. Only two pairs were ever made. One pair for me and one for a fairy who said she had a use for them."

The girl now stood in front of Florian. She was a full head shorter than him.

"You're tall," she said.

"Not … not really. I'm actually rather average."

"I'm Gwyneira. Nice to meet you."

"Florian. The pleasure is all mine." He shook the girl's proffered hand. It felt cold, as if she too was made of ice.

"Come, there must be something to eat somewhere," she said.

Florian followed the girl out of the room. When Florian had entered the building, the daylight outside had shone through the ice of the walls, keeping complete darkness at bay. Now the conic lamps set in recesses along the length of the corridor he was walking in filled it with a cold, bright light. The girl's straight, silvery-white hair reflected it so much it was as if she sparkled. Over her dress, grey like a snow-laden sky, she wore a cape that wrapped around her like a light mist. Florian wondered who she was.

He followed the girl round a corner, down a corridor and into a room he hadn't been in yet and what he saw there made him forget every question or worry he might have had. In the middle of the room was a table of ice, like an upturned UUU. On either side of it was a square block of ice, lower than the table. When the girl sat on one of them Florian realised they were seats. He sat down across her fearing the ice would melt from his body heath and seep through his trousers. Strangely the ice didn't feel cold and it didn't melt either. On the table stood a feast of dishes, warm and cold. Florian hadn't eaten properly for a week or two, so when the girl motioned with her hand to start, he didn't hesitate. When he'd finished, everything disappeared in the blink of an eye. All that remained was a cup and a pot of hot tea for Florian and a jug of lemonade with a glass next to it for the girl.

"Where do you come from," Gwyneira asked. Florian told her everything from the moment he left home to the moment she woke up. He just knew that those ice-blue eyes would see it if he told a lie.

Her pale translucent skin had just a hint of pink in it when she said, "You've had quite an eventful life. And you're still looking for a princess, are you?"

"Yes. I thought I might find the sleeping princess in the ice-castle here. It's a story I heard long ago. I can't even remember much of it except that a princess is waiting in her ice-castle, sleeping and waiting to be woken up by love."

"And you thought I was that princess?"

Florian nodded and the girl continued. "I'm afraid I'm not the princess you're looking for. I've never heard of this princess waiting for love to wake her up. And mine is the only ice-castle in the North. I'm the only person who lives here and I'm not a princess. Not anymore anyway. I'm the queen of all this."

She sighed, and there was a tone of loneliness and sadness in that sigh.

"You live here all alone, do you?" Florian asked.

"Yes, you're only the second person to come here. The first one … He loved me … and I loved him … That's not right though … I still love him … and I know he loves me, but we can't be together. Mother Nature forbids it. Fire and ice are too different. They have nothing in common."

"Both of them burn, though," remarked Florian. The ice-queen had a strange light in her eyes as she looked questioningly at him. "You know," he explained, "fire burns you but cold enough ice can burn as well."

Barely audible the ice queen repeated, "Both of them burn, both of them burn." She suddenly smiled and Florian held up his hands. From her eyes shone the light of a bright star. She was really blushing now.

"Tomorrow you have to tell me about your home. I'll show you your bedroom for now."

She showed him to a door further down the corridor. There was a stack of skins for him to sleep on and cover himself with. In one wall was an arched opening to a steam filled cubicle where Florian found a hot well he could bathe in.

Three days later he'd told the little Queen Gwyneira everything about his travels, his home and his dream of finding a wife. She had listened intently, asked some explanation here and there or commented on things he'd said. They went out for walks in the snowy landscape, Florian wrapped in furs, Gwyneira as ever in her misty grey dress and glass slippers. That's when Florian had a good look at the castle. It was definitely completely made of ice with double doors, doorframe and window frames made out of silver. There were only two floors to the main building, but snow-capped domes and turrets were dotted all along the structure making it an oddly exotic building for its icy environment.

On one of their walks to Florian's surprise Queen Gwyneira put out some bird food. He was even more surprised when a short time later some arctic terns arrived. She stood among them while they ate the food. It was as if she talked to the birds. When all the food was gone they flew away again. Florian couldn't work out where all the food came from, not the bird food and even less the delicious meals that were daily served in her house. Nothing could grow in the snow-covered country.

During their next meal, Florian asked Queen Gwyneira about the food; where it came from, who prepared it.

"Surely you must have realised that, in a place like this, it could only come from magic," she answered and laughed.

Florian thought he could listen to that laugh for the rest of his life. He found her clear, tinkling voice utterly enchanting. She was a beauty as well. A warmer light shone from her ice-blue eyes and when Florian took her hand in his it no longer felt cold. It was as if she shone with a warm light.

"She would make a great queen for our country," thought Florian. "I could build her a summerhouse in the eternal snowfields on our highest peaks. She would love that."

Florian had spent just over a week in Queen Gwyneira's country when he decided to ask her to be his wife. Once he had made up his mind he wondered when and how to broach the subject. A couple of sleepless nights later, he still wasn't sure what would be a suitable time or place to propose.

Breakfast was quiet that day. Florian was pondering how to start a conversation when the aim was to ask a girl's hand in marriage. He had absolutely no idea, nor any experience and Gwyneira seemed miles away with her thoughts. They were having their last cup of tea when Florian spoke up.

"Gwyneira …"

She started. "Sorry, did you say something?"

"I wanted to ask you something."

"Yes … of course …"

Florian was sure she hadn't heard anything he'd said. "Gwyneira?"

"Yes." Absentminded she got up and went outside. Florian followed and saw her looking up at the sky.

"Gwyneira, would you be my wife?" he blurted out. All or nothing, it was the only way.

"What?" She turned to face him.

"Gwyneira, would you do me the honour of becoming my wife?"

"Oh!" It sounded totally surprised. "Oh, Florian, I'm so sorry." Compassion had come into her voice. "I can't marry you. I'm sorry you didn't realise."

"Is it still this other man? If you give me a chance I'll help you to forget him. We don't have to get married immediately. Come with me to my home, to my parents. They'll like you."

She looked at him with sadness in her eyes. "Yes, part of it is the other man. But that's not all. Even if he didn't exist we could not become husband and wife. I'm not human, Florian. I'm a spirit of snow and ice."

"Come with me anyway. You can be a spirit of snow and ice in our mountains." She only smiled at him as if she wasn't sure what to answer to this. "I can't leave you here, all on your own," Florian added.

"I won't be alone anymore. You've made it happen, Florian. I sent your words to Dai, the man I love, and he's coming."

"What words?"

"You said 'fire and ice both burn'. It means Dai and I have something in common. It means we can be together; we can be married. Mother Nature approves our marriage now."

"This man, Dai, he's not a man?"

"He's a spirit of fire. Fire and ice. And you've brought us together." She couldn't keep the happiness out of her voice.

Something approached from the south, a golden ball. It descended and became a man, completely dressed in gold; even his hair had golden streaks in it. Gwyneira ran into the arms of the dark-skinned man and he twirled her around. He set her down and she whispered something. Hand in hand they went towards Florian. Gwyneira's misty cloak and grey dress were gone. Instead she wore a silver and white dress that sparkled every time she moved.

"Florian, this is Dai, the man I love. Dai, this is Florian, the man who made our union possible."

Strange golden eyes with pupils that danced and flickered like flames scrutinised Florian. Then the stranger smiled.

"Thank you. I never thought this would be possible."

Florian thought the man exuded warmth; his whole body, his golden-brown eyes, even his deep voice was warming.

Gwyneira kissed Florian. "I hope you'll find somebody. Be safe, Florian. We're going now."

The golden man and the silver girl embraced. They disappeared into a gold and silver orb that turned round and round for a spell and then shot of southward. In its wake coloured lights flashed across the sky in wide ribbons. Florian had never seen anything like it. The sky turned back to normal. Gwyneira and Dai were gone. Together they ruled both their kingdoms, staying part of the year in Dai's and part of the year in Gwyneira's realm. Every time they arrived in or left the kingdom of the north, the coloured ribbons of light could be seen flashing in the sky from a great distance. They stayed together forever, fire and ice united for eternity.

But this is the story of prince Florian and he was looking for a bride.

ooOOoo


	16. Chapter 10

**Author's Note: Thank you for the reviews (jimli, Caroline Lily-ann Youla, SilverStarlightXD, Arista Everett June), following (SilverStarlightXD) and favouriting (SilverStarlightXD, .3344)  
**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**10.**

When the little Queen Gwyneira and her golden lover Dai had gone, Florian started thinking of his home. He feared that trying to find a princess was a total waste of time. He'd been all over the place and, for different reasons, not one of the candidates had been suitable. He soon made up his mind and started for home, going in a roundabout way in the hope that he could perhaps find a princess after all. He crossed several countries but never found what he was looking for. He wandered about, not paying attention which way he went.

One day, crossing the border into yet another country, the border guard greeted him with the words, "Your Highness! Welcome to our country. His majesty is on a state visit at the moment but I'll notify Her Highness, Princess Carlotta, about your return. Her Highness will be pleased to see you, Sir."

To Florian's surprise the country he'd arrived at was one of the neighbours. He decided that if he visited one, he could just as well visit the royal families of all five countries that bordered his home. That was one official job less to do.

"Could I freshen up in the guardhouse before seeing Her Highness? I'm a bit travel stained to say the least. And could somebody take a message to my parents?"

"Of course, Your Highness," the guard said.

Florian thanked him, refreshed himself in the guardhouse and wrote a letter to his parents saying he would visit the neighbours and then come home immediately. He wasn't a great letter writer.

As he was in the country of Princess Carlotta, one of the older princesses, he decided to make a counter clockwise tour, visiting the young princesses and potential brides last.

Princess Carlotta was married, very happy with her three children and reasonably happy with her husband.

"I can't complain too much," she said. "You know how it is … oh, wait, you don't know. Well, he does his thing, I do mine and some things we do together." She laughed and Florian wondered if she was mocking him for failing to find a bride.

"That's very nice. I'm happy for you," said Florian ignoring the taunt.

The husband arrived later. He seemed a reasonably pleasant fellow who more or less repeated what the princess had said, "Sorry I wasn't here when you arrived. I was out riding; something my wife is not so keen on. But that's how it goes with married folk, isn't it. Some things you like doing together and other things you prefer doing on your own, or you're forced to do on your own. We can't all like the same things you know."

They asked Florian about his journey and he told them what he wanted to tell and kept other things to himself.

Then he went to the country of Princess Lutgardis, the second of the two older princesses. This country was not a kingdom but a principality and the princess was now head of state.

Princess Lutgardis, like all the neighbours, knew about Florian's absence and its reason. She asked him immediately if he had found the right princess on his long quest. Florian answered truthfully that he hadn't. To his surprise and embarrassment the princess became very flirty. She was batting her eyelids at him and acting shy and coy as if she was a young girl of sixteen instead of a mature woman, sixteen years his senior.

The princess noticed that Florian was not responding well to her flirting and presumed he didn't know she was free, or nearly so. To make it clear to him she would soon be available she told him that she had been married but was getting a divorce.

"The louse cheated on me with a brainless bimbo with big boobs. He made our marriage into a lie because he'd always told me he preferred clever people and was not interested in bodies," she said.

"I'm sorry things didn't work out for you," said Florian.

"Well, as soon as the divorce is finalised I'm giving an enormous party. You're still a bachelor, so I'll make sure to send you an invitation as well." She giggled like a girl who was having her first ball.

"Oh … right … thanks." Florian was already sure he was going to be unavoidably absent from that party.

Next he visited the ugly princess who was now the interesting queen Amanda. He also met her husband, her brother and her sister-in-law. When Florian saw the latter he said, "Don't I know you from somewhere?"

"Yes, you do," she answered. "Your parents were kind enough to let me spend the night. It had been raining all day and I was rather wet."

"Oh, yes. That was the day before I left on my journey. I thought you looked familiar, though we never really got to know each other."

"No, I left rather early the next morning. I think I was gone before you left."

She didn't tell him it had felt as if she'd been thrown out. It hadn't been his doing, and after all, she had met Armand because of that.

As if he'd read her mind, her husband said, "I'm glad your parents let her go. She's been a blessing to all of us."

When they saw that Florian was not upset that Anna had wed Armand and Queen Amanda was married to the duke Francis von Maussem but was actually happy for them, the afternoon became very pleasant. He told them about the strange places he had seen and they told him what had been happening closer to home. They forgot the time and Florian not only stayed for dinner but spent the night as well.

The following morning he left after breakfast. There were only two neighbours to visit. Both had daughters who were eight years younger than Florian and now, ten years later, they were of marriageable age. Back then they had been cute and sweet little girls and Florian was looking forward to seeing them all grown up.

He arrived at the first palace about mid-morning. He was heartily welcomed by the king who had always thought Florian a very eligible suitor. The king invited him in for morning coffee and ordered a servant to get his daughter.

"Tell Princess Theresa to come to the parlour. We have a guest."

The princess came, not looking very pleased to have been called away from whatever she'd been doing. Morning coffee was served in the parlour. The king asked Florian to entertain them with the adventures he'd had during the past years and Florian told them about wonders of the world he had seen, and strange habits and foods in exotic places.

After a very short time the king said he had urgent business to attend to and left Florian and his daughter on their own. Princes Theresa didn't seem at all interested in Florian's story. She was yawning all the time. Florian wondered if she was really listening. To test her he told a ridiculous story about a green cat that only ate red birds. She didn't even blink.

When a servant came into the room to remind her that her riding instructor was waiting for her, she came to life again. She jumped of the chair she'd been hanging in.

"I'm sorry, I have to go now," she said in a bright and happy voice. "I can't keep my instructor waiting. Goodbye." And she ran away so speedily that Florian didn't have the time to say goodbye to her. Florian took his leave of the king and went on his way to his last neighbour, the country that had the automated clock in its palace tower. He had a meal on the way and arrived at his destination just in time for afternoon tea.

Here too he was welcomed with open arms by the king.

"So glad to see you're back, Prince Florian. And without a bride I see."

Florian thought the king only just managed not to rub his hands in glee at that.

"I'm sure my daughter will be thrilled to see you. She's having her usual afternoon tea. Why don't you go in to see her? It's just a casual event. No need for etiquette. Just go in. John, you take Prince Florian to Princess Veronica's afternoon tea room."

The servant called John asked Florian to follow him. Florian remembered Princess Veronica best of all. Of the two younger princesses she'd been the prettiest by far. Big blue eyes in a pale face, with the faintest of blushes. Her paleness had been accentuated further by her dark hair, just like her blue eyes seemed bluer because of her favourite blue dress.

John eventually stopped in front of double doors and knocked. Florian heard a female voice cry out, "What now!" Moments later a young man opened the door.

"A new guest for Princess Veronica," John whispered. "It's Prince Florian who's back from his quest."

The young man shouted at someone inside, "It's a Prince Florian at the door."

The woman's voice shouted back "Let him in and close that door."

Florian went in and renewed his acquaintance with Princess Veronica. He was disappointed. She had grown up to become a pretty young woman, in a pink princess kind of way with blonde, obviously dyed, hair and a light tan. She was lying in a sea of pink on a chaise longue, sipping tea. Scattered about the room were small tables surrounded by white wicker chairs. Most of the chairs were taken by young men. Some of them Florian recognised, so he knew they were princess, dukes, counts, and barons as well as sons waiting to inherit titles. Four girls dressed in black with white aprons were there to make sure everyone had drinks and cakes.

"Daniel, let Florian sit there," the princess said to Count Daniel who was sitting next to her on her left-hand side. He grumbled a bit but vacated his chair for Florian.

No sooner was Florian seated and served or Princess Veronica asked him about his journey.

"What do the girls wear in faraway places? Do they have their hair long or short? I read short is becoming fashionable but my dad doesn't let me cut mine. I have to have these old-fashioned long tresses. Do they use red or pink lipstick abroad?"

For the next hour she asked Florian about dresses, hairstyles and make-up and nothing else. One of the young men dared to ask Florian if he'd seen the sea because he'd heard it was such a fantastic sight. Florian wanted to tell him about the blue-green clear water, the colourful fishes and the strange plant like creatures that lived in it but he was interrupted by Princess Veronica before he'd even uttered one syllable.

"It's just water, Phillip, honestly. The sea is like a lake but bigger," she told the poor baron. Then she turned to Florian. "Tell me some more about the length of the trains on the dresses you've seen in those exotic places. And is there really a country where all women have ginger hair."

"Sorry?"

"My uncle told me about that country. He said it was called Redairdia. Did you see princesses as pretty as me on your journey?"

Florian wanted to say, "Plenty," but thought it would cause problems with Princess Veronica so he didn't say anything. He didn't have to. The princess gave her own answer.

"Of course you haven't seen anyone like me, have you."

Now Florian could truthfully answer, "No, I haven't."

Just then one of the guests got up and made his way to Princess Veronica.

"I'm very sorry princess, but I have to go," he said. "My mother –"

"Are you saying your mother is more important than I am, Prince Frank?" the princess asked.

Florian thought her voice could have cut through solid rock.

"No, but my grandmo –"

"Is it your mother or grandmother? Sit down again or go and never come back. Your choice, Prince Frank."

Florian couldn't believe the man was actually hesitating for a moment. Eventually Prince Frank said, "Goodbye, Princess Veronica, I've enjoyed your tea afternoons." Then he walked away stiffly followed by an outburst of Princess Veronica. Florian couldn't believe a princess actually knew and used those words. He'd seen and heard enough. Others might call Princess Veronica very pretty but to him she was too rude and vain. Her only interests were clothes, hairstyles and make-up. She wanted to be worshipped and praised all the time by every man who came to her tea parties. He'd even discovered she had some sort of league table. The more someone praised her, the closer to her he was allowed to sit. The smirking young man sitting at the right of her was certainly a master of the art of toadying. As there were enough young men in the room to be slaves to Princess Veronica's whims, Florian got up, said "Thank you for the tea and cakes, Princess Veronica," and left. He was gone so quickly that the princess didn't have time to shout abuse at him.

Not long afterward Princess Theresa ran off with her riding instructor and became Tracey Brown. She ended up living in an ordinary house with a horde of children while her husband flirted with every girl or woman he gave lessons to. Tracey didn't care. She was happy in her ordinary life, away from boring court duties. And to be fair to her husband, he never left her, never even had an affair and always said that although he liked all women and girls, there was only one he truly loved.

The news of Princess Theresa's elopement with her riding instructor also reached the father of Princess Veronica. He feared his daughter might make a similar stupid mistake and marry the wrong man. This was not an unreasonable fear, considering the flocks of young men that were always surrounding her and her habit of favouring the one who was best at flattery. One in particular worried the king; a certain Baron Bertrand of Bamburgh, a ne'er-do-well with a silver tongue, his daughter's favourite. Six month after Theresa became Tracey, Princess Veronica was married off to an older man, a rich lord, who let her have her afternoons with her suitors. He was always either sitting next to her or in his adjacent office from where he could observe her. To make absolutely sure nothing untoward could happen, he kept her a virtual captive for as long as they were both alive.

But this is the story of prince Florian and he was still looking for a bride.

ooOOoo


	17. Chapter 11-1

**Authors Note: Thanks for the reviews to Arista Everett June, Shortie-M, Ebony Starstorm, Jimli and Caroline Lily-ann Youla. Florian has reached the milestone of 50 reviews. The most of any of my stories. Thanks to everyone who contributed to those 50.  
To Ebony Starstorm, grace . harris . 3344 and Arista Everett June. Thank you for favouriting this story.  
**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**11.1**

After leaving Princess Veronica, Florian felt he had done his duty towards the neighbours. It was time to go home now. The sight of the mountains in the distance and the glistening of the lakes in the sunshine warmed his heart. The scent of the flower meadows made him dizzy and he wondered why he'd ever left home. The closer he was to his home, the faster he walked. Finally he was running, not stopping until he stood at the door of his parent's castle. Florian was home. He rang the bell.

The door was opened by a young woman about his age.

"Yes?" she said.

Florian was sure he'd never seen her before. Of course he'd been gone ten years. A lot must have changed in that time. The young woman looked him up and down. Before he could say his name a light of recognition came into her eyes. Leaving the door open she ran into the parlour calling out, "Aunt Belle, Aunt Belle, he's come back, Prince Florian has returned."

Florian followed her inside the castle and closed the door. He put his backpack down and when he turned around his mother came out of the parlour. For just a second she looked at him then she ran into his arms.

"Florian, my boy." She held his face in her hands and kissed him all over. "You're back, you're back. Oh, Florian. It's been such a long time. But you're back now. Come in, come in. I'll send Rosalind to get something to eat for you, you must be hungry."

Florian laughed, "No, mum, I'm not hungry at all."

"Of course you're hungry. You're a growing boy."

"Mum, I'm twenty-six. I think any growing I'll be doing from now on is sideways."

King Floris came running too.

"Florian! You're home!" He clapped Florian on the shoulder. "My, you have grown. You're so much taller."

"Of course he's grown. He's been away for ten years."

"He's home now, darling. Come, Florian, tell us everything."

They went into the parlour and sat down together. Florian told his parents about all the princesses he'd met on his travels. He told them about Princess Amelia who only liked trinkets and toys; about the four princesses who had been so disappointed in men they didn't want to see another man ever again; and about Princess Clara who couldn't laugh.

"Well," said King Floris, "that Princess Amelia was totally unsuitable as a wife. And you say that Princess Clara was married to the man who made her laugh? And nobody checked whether he would be a good king? Strange habits they have in foreign parts."

"I feel sorry for those girls in the tower," said Queen Isabella. "They must have been so hurt that they chose to live isolated like that. I wonder if they're truly happy."

"I don't know about truly happy, but they were certainly truly scary, especially Rapunzel."

When the queen heard about Princess Maria and her enchanted king she cried a bit.

"What you did for them was so wonderful," she said. "I'm so proud of you Florian."

"It might have been a problem if you _had_ married her. It's not easy to rule two countries that far apart," was his father's comment.

Of course Florian also mentioned Princess Sophie and her dragon.

"What was wrong with her? Why didn't you bring her home as your bride?" asked King Floris.

"We would be fighting and arguing all the time, dad," Florian answered. "It's not how I had imagined my marriage."

Then he talked about the woman he _had_ asked, Queen Gwyneira.

"She was beautiful and sweet, kind and clever. When she left with the man she loved I decided to come home."

King Floris and Queen Isabella felt for their son. He'd gone to the farthest end of the world to find love and had returned alone and broken-hearted. They soon realised that it was only a slight fracture. Florian was laughing again when he related his visits to the young princesses, Theresa and Veronica.

"I'm sorry, dad," he said, "but I can't make either of them my wife."

"Quite right too," the king commented. "I fear their parents may still have problems with those two. Indulged far too much, if you ask me."

"I saw Princess Anna as well," Florian then said. "She seemed happy, as was her sister-in-law, Queen Amanda."

"I've done the pea and mattress test and according to that Anna is no princess," said the queen. "But I suppose not everyone thinks that's important. Modern times, they tell me. I suppose I'm a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to marriage but it's an important step."

"Yes, darling, it is. We can be sure our son will make the right decision."

"Not for a while," said Florian. "First I want to visit our country, officially and unofficially. I've got time enough to look for a bride."

The king and queen looked at each other. They approved of the planned visits, especially the official ones, but Florian had to find a bride, a future queen for their country. They would take matters in hand, though that could be discussed later, when Florian had properly settled in again.

"Right, I think we'll have something to eat now," said Queen Isabella. "We've been talking so long it is seven already, high time for dinner."

She pulled a bell-rope near the open fire and soon the young woman appeared.

"We're ready to eat now, Rosalind."

"Everything is ready, Aunt Belle. I set the table for three in the small dining room."

"No, no. Just because Florian is home now doesn't mean you're no longer my companion. You're eating with us, Rosalind, just like you've done for as long as you've been here."

Rosalind curtsied and left the room. Florian had recognised the young woman who called his mother 'Aunt Belle' as the one who'd opened the door to him.

"Who is she?" he asked. "She said 'Aunt Belle' but I don't recall having a cousin."

"She's the daughter of an old friend of mine," Queen Isabella said. I'll explain later how she became part of our household."

During dinner Florian's parents kept asking him questions about his journey, the people he'd met and the princesses he'd seen; by the end of the meal Rosalind too knew everything about Florian's quest for a bride.

The meal finished, the royal family went to their favourite sitting room with its view of their garden and the mountains behind it. Rosalind asked to be excused, saying she had planned to write to her family that evening.

"Of course, my dear," the queen said, "you do that." She realised Rosalind wanted to leave them alone on Florian's first evening back. Besides with Rosalind not there she would have a chance to answer Florian's questions about the girl.

Queen Isabella was right. It didn't take long before Florian asked about the young woman again and the queen told him.

"It was some years after you had gone when my old friend Charlotte contacted me. She was taking her daughters to see a possible husband and said she could make a detour to see me. We arranged that she could stay for a week with her three daughters, Rosalind, Alexandra and Alice. Charlotte has five daughters. At the time the eldest, Louise and Catherine, were already married. The man they had gone to see was supposed to ask Rosalind, she being next in line. Instead he asked Alexandra's hand in marriage. And with Alice already unofficially engaged Rosalind became the odd one out. Charlotte had hoped that the poor girl would be asked but of course she looks rather plain and compared to her four sisters who are real beauties, well, she stood no chance really. But she's a friendly girl and I like her. At the time I felt a bit lonely so when they were ready to leave I asked Charlotte if Rosalind could stay. Well, Charlotte didn't mind and Rosalind was glad to stay. I could quite understand. It was engagement parties and wedding arrangement and baby showers, one after the other, and she the only one without husband or fiancé. Worse still; in the time she's been here we've had quite a lot of foreign visitors and not one was interested. Not even the widower with nine children who was ten years older than Rosalind. I fear she's doomed to be an old maid, but to me she's been a wonderful companion while you've been gone."

"Why do you call her an old maid? She can't be much older than I am, if any."

"She's the same age as you but it's different for girls, you know."

"Well, that's just silly," Florian commented. And that finished the subject Rosalind. After that they talked about things that had happened in the kingdom while Florian had been away.

That evening Florian went to his own bedroom for the first time in ten years. He found the room hadn't changed one bit. It was warm and welcoming but it felt strange. Florian realised what the reason was. The room was still the same, but he wasn't.

"Nothing a good clear-out won't fix," Florian thought.

But there was time enough for that. For the moment he wanted to enjoy being home. Florian went out onto the terrace outside his room. It was a warm evening in early summer, with hardly any wind. The air was suffused with the perfumes of the flowers, mixed with the scents of herbs in his mother's kitchen garden just beneath his window. In the distance he could just see the outline of the mountains. The whole place seemed to cry out, "Welcome Home" to him. When he finally went back inside, the room didn't look strange anymore. Florian had finally come home.

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To be continued ...


	18. Chapter 11-2

**Author's Note: Thanks again to Jimli and Caroline Lily-ann Youla for the faithful reviewing. And thank you to the anonymous Guest. That was a lovely picture you painted. Also welcome to new follower Tafnia.  
**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**11.2**

Next morning the weather was so nice that breakfast had been set out on the terrace. Florian arrived just as Rosalind put the final touches to the breakfast table. She saw him and quickly went to the kitchen door.

"Don't run away from me," Florian said. "Please, sit down and have breakfast with me. I don't enjoy it so much on my own."

Florian gestured invitingly at the table. Rosalind hesitated. She wanted to say something but Florian gestured again more insistently so she sat down. Florian sat down next to Rosalind, the only place from which he could look at the mountains. First he wanted a cup of tea but couldn't see any.

"Where is the tea? There isn't a drink of any kind on this table."

"No." Rosalind bit her lip so as not to laugh. "I was just on my way to get it when you insisted I sit down, Prince Florian."

"You … weren't trying to escape?"

"No, of course not, Sir. Unless you're about to confess you're a cannibal."

"I was about to confess I'm a prize idiot," laughed Florian as he got up to fetch the drinks.

"I've missed this," said Florian when he'd come back. "The only thing better than sitting here looking at those mountains is to be up amongst them."

"Are you going to the mountains, Sir? Isn't it dangerous?"

"Not on the lower levels. It's a great area for walking. Then there are the climbing possibilities; from easy to extreme. I had to promise not to do those anymore."

"It sounds great," Rosalind said with a sigh.

"Haven't you been in the mountains yet, then?"

"No, Sir, I've always been here with your mother."

Just then King Floris and Queen Isabella came outside. The topic of conversation now was parties and balls to celebrate Florian's return. Personally he was not too bothered or keen but he realised there was no getting away from it.

"Do what you want, mum, as long as I have time to go walking in the mountains and swimming in the lake."

"Well, you can't do those when it's dark and that's when we have balls and parties. You're not getting out of this."

To change the topic he asked, "Is it true that Rosalind has never been in the mountains? And that she's never seen the lakes close up?"

After a moment's thought the queen said, "Come to think of it, no. You know I don't tend to go in the mountains and I presumed Rosalind didn't want to either."

"Perhaps she can come with me? I'm not going too far or too high today. I want to go to The Lakes this afternoon."

"Would you like to, Rosalind?" Queen Isabella asked.

"If it's not inconvenient to Prince Florian, I'd love to Aunt Belle."

"That's settled then," said Florian. "On one condition; you stop saying Sir and Prince Florian. Just Florian is fine. Agreed?"

"Agreed, Florian."

"Now, put some comfortable clothes on and your easiest shoes. I'll meet you down here in thirty minutes."

Florian got changed quickly, then he checked the rucksack he had always used to go hiking. He thought he still had time for another cup of tea before Rosalind would be ready but when he went out to the terrace she was already there. She wanted to get up but Florian motioned her to stay seated.

"I rather fancy a cup myself," he said. "We have plenty of time for our walk."

When they got up Florian was surprised at the clothes Rosalind was wearing: trousers, shirt, short jacket and walking boots. Rosalind saw the look on his face and misinterpreted it.

"Are these the wrong sort of clothes?" she asked.

"They're absolutely perfect," Florian admitted. "I'm just amazed that a homey type of girl would have such clothes."

"I've always loved walking." She smiled and Florian thought it made her look pretty.

Their walk started off easy, along fairly level paths. But Florian hadn't been in his beloved mountains for such a long time that he started to go higher and higher. He came to a lookout point and saw some of the most beautiful lakes in his country lying below in the valley. Rosalind had been enjoying the walk, even the more difficult part. She caught up with Florian and looked out over the valley. Her sharp intake of breath at the beauty below her reminded Florian that he wasn't alone. He looked at the young woman next to him. The walk had brought some colour to her pale cheeks. Her lips were slightly parted as she smiled in wonder. She looked at him, her big brown eyes shining brightly with excitement at what she saw.

"It's so beautiful," she said. "Are these the lakes you're going to swim in?"

"No, nobody swims here. These are the Black Lakes. They're too deep and the water never gets really warm enough. Great for fishing, though."

"You fish?"

"Me? No, not at all. Too much sitting down, staring at nothing. People say it helps them think but it only helps to put me to sleep. I prefer to do my thinking while I walk."

"That was noticeable," she teased.

"I'm sorry. It's this bride thing, you see. I haven't found one yet so now it's going to be balls and parties, until either a suitable bride turns up at one of these, or I go on another quest to try and find a bride myself." He sighed deeply.

"Come on; surely it's not that bad."

"You think so? We had a ball before I left. These girls ask the most stupid things. Un-be-lievable. _How many tournaments have you won, Prince Florian? _None, I don't like fighting if I don't have to. _How many dragons have you killed, Prince Florian? _None, I petted the last one I met. _Would you walk to the end of the world for me, Prince Florian? _Would I what?"

Tears of laughter were running down Rosalind's face at Florian's imitation of the silly questions he got asked. He started laughing as well and suddenly realised never before had he laughed like that together with a girl.

He was still hiccupping with laughter when he said, "It's time we returned or we'll be late for lunch."

There walk back was slower, more relaxed. Here and there Florian stopped to point one of the taller peaks in the mountains, or he stopped for another view. At one point he took a path that led higher up again to a small meadow.

"Do you trust me enough to close your eyes and let me guide you?" he asked.

She nodded. "Close your eyes then," he said and slowly guided her to the edge of the meadow. "Now open your eyes."

There below them in the valley lay the royal palace.

"It's the castle of the sugar plum fairy! I didn't realise the walls were pink."

"You only see the pinkness of the stone from a distance. This is the best spot to see it from. And you can see the town as well."

"You are proud of your country, aren't you?"

"Yes, it isn't big, but why would I want bigger?"

They sat down, looking out over the castle and the capital. After some time a figure came out of the castle and started waving a red flag. Florian jumped up and quickly pulled Rosalind to her feet.

"I'm in trouble," he said. "That red flag means mum is waiting to start lunch. We will be late."

"Are you sure? They couldn't know you were here, could they?"

"Oh, yes, they could," he laughed. "This is where I always am when I'm late. I lose all sense of time when I sit here."

They went down as fast as they safely could and stated running as soon as the path became a proper road. Queen Isabella was waiting for them at the entrance to the castle.

"You can wash your hands here and come to the dining room immediately. There's no time to change. I should have known you would go to the meadow immediately."

Florian and Rosalind did as instructed. During the meal Queen Isabella asked Rosalind if she had enjoyed the walk. The enthusiasm of the girl gave Florian an idea.

"Could you miss Rosalind this afternoon as well, mum? I'd like to take her to The Lakes for a swim."

"Good idea," answered the queen. "I can see that walk did her good. She's been cooped up inside with me for far too long."

"But I'm here to be your companion, Aunt Belle."

"Even companions need a holiday and you haven't had one day since you came here. Enjoy yourself for a change."

"Thank you, Aunt Belle," the young girl said while embracing the older woman.

On the way to The Lakes Rosalind asked Florian all about them. And Florian told her it was actually one large lake with an island in the middle. "There's a spot in the mountains where you can see them from above. The Lakes look like a big, blue four-petal flower with a green island at its heart."

"A lake like a flower with a green heart? That's a romantic picture," commented Rosalind. Florian could hear a trill in her voice, just like that morning when he had stopped her from getting the drinks. She was trying not to laugh.

"It's an image created by one of our poets. He wrote a very long, very soppy poem about The Lakes. I'm not entirely sure he meant it seriously." Florian laughed. "You thought I came up with that picture myself, didn't you?"

She nodded and asked, "IS there a spot in the mountains from where you can see The Lakes?"

"Yes, and it looks beautiful but nothing like a flower. I think the thin air got to our poet."

Rosalind couldn't hold it any longer and laughed out loud.

Talking and laughing all the way, they quickly reached The Lakes. It was quiet; a couple of small sailing boats were out on the lake; a few mothers were playing with their children. Florian undressed to his swimming trunks and ran into the water. Slowly he swam towards the island. Someone was catching up with him so Florian increased his speed. Soon it became a race for the island. Florian couldn't see who his competitor was until he came out of the water, just ahead of Rosalind who was breathing heavily. She flopped down on the beach.

"Wow, you're a fast swimmer. And you're not even the slightest bit out of breath," she said.

"I suppose I'm not the weed that set off from home ten years ago," Florian answered. "But you're an excellent swimmer as well."

"Thanks. I've always loved swimming but my mother said it wasn't ladylike. My sisters thought that all the walking and swimming and running had made me ugly and too muscly and that's why I never had a suitor."

"That's nonsense. You've got a lovely figure and you're not ugly. Your sisters must be really silly girls."

"How would you know about my figure? You're not wearing your glasses."

"It's true that without them the other side of the lake looks blurry, but I can see enough to notice your body. And it's a nice one as well."

His wolf whistle made Rosalind blush. To hide her embarrassment she swam back across the lake. Florian followed her. She was lying on her stomach, her face hidden in her arms and didn't react when he arrived.

"I'm sorry if I said anything to upset you. I didn't mean to."

She sat up. "I suppose I'm not used to getting compliments about the way I look. I overreacted."

"Let me make it up to you. I know a little place nearby that does the most exquisite iced cream you ever had. Or have you already been to Alfonso's? No? Let's go then."

Florian took Rosalind to the other side of the lake where a little teashop with terrace overlooked the landing stage where all sorts of little boats were bobbing on the water. Florian ordered two 'fruity iced creams'. Two big goblets filled with different flavours ice-cream and fresh fruit were put in front of them. Rosalind ate a spoonful of the cold sweet concoction. Florian saw the look of delight on her face.

"Rather good, isn't it? Mother stopped making it herself after tasting Alfonso's. She says that you have to go to the artist if you've got one living this close by."

"This is heavenly," said Rosalind when she finally managed to talk. "Thank you for bringing me here, Florian."

While they were enjoying their iced creams Florian told Rosalind about the first time he'd had it and how it instantly became his favourite dessert. That led to a long conversation about their likes and dislikes in everything from food, to books, to music. They found they had a lot in common but disagreed on quite a few things as well. When little candles were put on the tables, Florian realised it was time to go. They walked back around the lake, rather than the way they had come, and arrived at the castle in time to get changed for dinner. Florian's mum approved.

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To be continued ...


	19. Chapter 11-3

**Author's Note: Welcome to new follower Yoffi. And thanks to reviewers Caroline Lily-ann Youla and 13-Red-Cards, and of course to Jimli who sent a PM. Here's the next chapter in Florian's adventure. I hope you all enjoy it.**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**11.3**

While plans were being made for Florian's tour of the country he went out for long walks in the mountains. Occasionally he went climbing on one of the peaks. On many of these outings Rosalind accompanied him. She enjoyed the challenge and she enjoyed learning a new skill.

Florian couldn't believe how different she was from the princesses he'd met. One day he told her, "I never thought I could be friends with a girl but you are different. You're practically one of the guys, not afraid of anything, least of all of getting your clothes a bit dirty."

"Thank you for calling me a friend," she said. Florian thought he'd seen a flash of sadness when he had called her 'one of the guys' but it was so quick that he wasn't sure.

Summer was running out of time. For the first time since she became companion to Queen Isabella, Rosalind disliked the discolouration of the leaves. She used to enjoy how the green mountainside became a painter's palette with splashes of red, orange and yellow. Now they meant the end of her outings with Florian.

On a glorious day in early autumn Florian and Rosalind made their last trip to The Lakes. After the weekend Florian would start on his planned tour of his country. By the time he returned the weather would have become too cold for swimming. As usual they ended their day at The Lakes with a visit to Alfonso's. Rosalind wanted to enjoy the outing to the very last minute. She realised she might never sit there with Florian again. She knew that King Floris and Queen Isabella wanted him to get married. She would help them to send invitations to as many available princesses as they could find. Florian was bound to find a wife among them and then their friendship would end; no wife would allow her husband to be friends with another woman. And she didn't stand a chance; she was 'one of the guys', not a potential partner.

Florian interrupted her musings. "Can I write to you when I'm on my tour? I've gotten used to talking things over with you. I would like it very much if you would write to me as well." The last bit was said hesitantly.

"Of course you can write to me. And I'll answer every letter."

"I don't like tours really. All the flag waving and cheering as if I was something special. And then the interminable speeches. This time though it can last as long as possible. I dread the balls when I come back. It's not how I imagined finding my future wife. I always thought I would … you know … rescue her … or something. I suppose I want to meet her in some spectacular way, not in a noisy room full of screaming girls."

"Does it matter how and where you find her if she's the right person?"

"I suppose not. It would have been nice to have a great story to tell any future children though. Just imagine them asking, _Daddy how did you find mummy?_ What would make more impact on the kids? I met your mummy at a dance or I killed the fire breathing dragon and rescued her?"

"You could always say, 'It doesn't matter how I found her. The most important thing is: I did.'"

"True." Then Florian laughed, "That fire breathing dragon could have caught another Princess Sophie."

"I think it's time we went back. Aunt Belle will be waiting with dinner. What time will you leave for your tour of the country tomorrow?"

"Immediately after an early breakfast." Florian sighed, then added, "On second thought I'm still pleased we only have a small country. At least I'll be back within a few months."

Next morning Rosalind joined him for breakfast and promised again to write, often. Then Florian set of to visit every village, town and city in the country. It wasn't as bad as he'd expected. None of the places were very large. The largest, the capital, had only five thousand inhabitants; the smallest village had five people and a horse. He wrote to Rosalind, "The flag waving and cheering is not as bad as I feared. And I actually get to meet people to talk to them; hear about their problems, listen to their wishes. I've never been so inspired to do things for our people."

Rosalind wrote back, telling him about the walks she made to the places he'd shown her and her visit to Alfonso's where, on a cold day, she had hot chocolate, made with proper chocolate, and pancakes. She didn't write about the preparations for the balls, the amount of invitations that had been sent out and the unexpected amount of positive replies that had been received. She didn't tell him about the headache this had given Queen Isabella who had to make sure not to offend any of the families who would not be able to stay in the castle. In short, Rosalind made sure to avoid any allusion to what was waiting for Florian on his return.

And so days became weeks, weeks became months and months ended. Florian came home filled with ideas and plans and landed in the middle of utter chaos. A horde of young girls with their expectant parents had descended on the castle like a swarm of locusts. Even the nearest of the large houses were filled to the rafters. Where his parents had managed to find so many marriageable princesses he didn't know, although he noticed quite a few exotic beauties. Queen Isabella had indeed sent invitations to every corner of the known world to give her son the biggest choice in princesses possible. So many girls had been invited, and had accepted the invitation, that the ballroom at the small castle would not be large enough. Luckily there was the health spa: four hotels joined together by an enormous atrium that was often used for large official occasions.

Because they were all occupied getting everything sorted for the ball, Florian only saw his parents fleetingly on the day of his return and Rosalind not at all. He wanted to talk to her about his tour of the country, about the things he'd seen and wanted to do. She would ask the right questions, help him to look at problems from a different angle, help him to order his thoughts. But Rosalind was busy assisting his mother with preparations for the balls.

Florian didn't have a moment's peace. Every girl who stayed in the palace wanted to talk to him. If it had been an option Florian would have run back to the Ice Plains of the North to hide in Queen Gwyneira's ice castle. At least he still had his room which had a door with a lock on it that worked. Every opportunity he had, Florian went there and locked himself in or escaped to the mountains.

When some of the girls discovered where Florian escaped to, they tried to follow him. Florian and his guide, a man who could climb the mountains as easily as the stairs in his own house, went to the more difficult and higher peaks, the ones Florian had promised not to do on his own. None of the girls could pursue him there. This didn't prevent them from waiting for him on lower ground until he came back down. Florian became a master in finding short cuts, alternative routes and roundabout ways for getting from the mountains to the castle in order to avoid them. A number of them who stayed at the castle swarmed him as soon as he arrived home, not realising they were seriously damaging their chances that way.

Just when it seemed it would never come, the day of the first ball arrived. Florian was already looking forward to the end of the third and last one. To escape the laughing and giggling, the overcrowded rooms and corridors in the castle and the shrieks when he accidentally touched one of the dresses that were being ironed, fixed, spruced up or whatever else needed doing to them at the very last minute – he thought it was only a serious case of mass hysteria – Florian fled the castle and went to Alfonso's for some peace and quiet. He walked to the lake and back, had another drink and had to be reminded that he couldn't stay any longer as he was the special attraction at the ball that evening. He had to run all the way from The Lakes to the castle to get ready in time for the ball.

The first people had started to come in when Florian arrived at the hotels' atrium. He was introduced to the girls, their parents and brothers if they had them. Florian had lost count of how many girls he'd seen when the waltz that would open the ball was announced. He was expected to dance with every girl so he asked the one closest to him and escorted her to the dance floor. One girl after another passed through his hands. Dark as night, chestnut, cornfield yellow, russet, auburn, flaxen, pitch-black, golden, chocolate, all manners of hair brushed his face. Then he saw Rosalind with a man. Florian couldn't keep his eyes from the scene. He saw the man was trying to drag her away into a dark corner and Rosalind was struggling to get away from him. Florian apologised to the girl he was dancing with – the song had nearly ended anyway – and made his way towards his friend. He couldn't ask her for a dance because he had to give preference to the girls who were invited guests. But at least he could free her from her obnoxious partner. He tapped Rosalind on the shoulder.

"Rosalind, my mother needs you right this instant," he said to the girl and turning to the man added, "I'm sure you'll forgive her but my mother rather relies on her companion."

With a scowl the man let go of Rosalind's hand. "I don't think you're worth the trouble anyway," he said. "You're as plain as plain can be, if not downright ugly." Then he walked away. Florian had recognised the Baron Bertrand of Bamburgh. He had to dig deep to keep his calm and stop himself from kicking the scoundrel out. The man was, unfortunately, a guest.

While Florian escorted Rosalind to where he knew his mother would be, she thanked him.

"I'm sure he was up to no good," she said, "but there was nothing I could do. He was just too strong."

"Next time kick him in the family jewels," Florian whispered.

"I doubt your parents would appreciate it," Rosalind giggled.

"I would," Florian answered with a wink.

They'd arrived at the opposite side of the atrium and Florian sat Rosalind down next to his mother.

"Could you look after Rosalind, mum?" Florian asked. "Some men here see her as fair game."

"What?" Queen Isabella asked, but her son had left already to fulfil his duty so she asked Rosalind what had happened. When the girl had told her she gave her the same answer as her son, "No compassion for that sort, my girl. Just kick them in the family jewels."

Florian thought it would never happen but eventually he did dance with the last girl. After that he just danced with whichever one happened to stand in front of him because his mother and Rosalind seemed to have an enjoyable conversation. He didn't know that, when his back was turned, Rosalind looked at him with longing in her eyes.

In the small hours of the morning the band ended the ball with the national anthem. The girls all went to bed to dream of their dance with Florian or one of the other princes; their mothers dreamt of organising weddings; Queen Isabella dreamt of Florian presenting his chosen wife and Florian had a nightmare about having to dance at a ball every night for the rest of his life.

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To be continued ...


	20. Chapter 11-4

**Author's note: Thanks to rvanderzwaag17 for following and favouriting. Thanks to reviewers 13-Red-Cards, Jimli and Caroline Lily-ann Youla.**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**11.4**

Next morning Florian thought the nightmare was still going on when his mother announced the next ball would be in two days' time. He stayed out of the way as much as possible but occasionally he thought it was fun to watch the antics of these girls. They would squabble and call each other names; they would pull each other's hair and all of them wanted to get the most attention. He saw his mother slalom between the girls, comforting here, telling off there and somehow managing to keep every one of them at least reasonably happy. He also saw that Rosalind was invaluable to her, fetching and carrying. One moment she would be taking what looked like a big heap of material to the resident seamstress; next she would be running down the stairs with a box of sequins. Just like Florian's mother she seemed to be everywhere at the same time, always calm, always friendly.

When the moment of the second ball arrived Florian was just about on time. Again he danced with every girl so that none would feel either preferred or disadvantaged. The first time he saw Rosalind she stood not too far from his mother. She looked wistfully at the dancers and Florian decided to ask her as soon as he'd done his duty towards the guests. The second time he saw her Rosalind was dancing with one of the male guests. Florian felt a twinge of jealousy. He wanted to dance with her but there were still girls he hadn't danced with. Later in the evening he saw her a third time. She was dancing, laughing and obviously enjoying the company of her partner, the brother of one of the girls. It upset Florian so much he lost his step and trod heavily on the feet of his dance partner. He apologised profusely and escorted the limping girl off the dance floor. For as long as the dance lasted he stayed by her side without paying her any more attention. Florian couldn't take his eyes of Rosalind. Seeing her with this other man physically hurt him. He had the urge to go to them and tell the man, "Hands off, she is my girl."

Florian didn't understand his feelings. Rosalind was his friend. They could talk about all sorts of things. She was his sounding board, a companion when he went walking or climbing, somebody to exchange thoughts with. He should be happy if she found a partner, like he was supposed to do. So why wasn't he happy to see her with another man? Why did he feel like throttling the guy? When the music stopped he thanked his partner and apologised again. He wanted to dance with Rosalind next, but couldn't see her anymore. While he danced with the remaining girls he looked out if he could see her but she seemed to have vanished. When he had danced with the last of the girls, Florian abandoned the dance floor to go look for Rosalind. He finally found her sitting with the man and two other girls. He couldn't keep his eyes off her. The candle light had flecked her dark brown hair with red copper lights. Her smile lit up her face. Not for the first time he was surprised anyone would call her plain. She must have felt his gaze because suddenly she looked up.

Rosalind saw Florian and went towards him.

"Come," she said, "I want to introduce you to some friends of mine."

She grabbed his hand and escorted him to the table.

"I believe you all know Prince Florian," she said. "Florian, these two girls were my best friends at school. This redhead is Princess Anastasia and the petite blonde is Princess Eloisa. This red ruffian here is Prince Georgy, brother of Anastasia and husband to Eloisa. They got married just before coming here, so this is a bit their honeymoon."

Florian felt as if the weight of the world had fallen off his shoulders. He was ready to admit that these were the most wonderful people in the whole assembly merely because the young man was already married and would not take Rosalind away. He was invited to join the little group and had the best time of the evening listening to the tales of Rosalind's schooldays. When the band started playing the national anthem to announce the end of the festivities they couldn't believe it was really that late already.

In the morning King Floris asked Florian to join him in his office after breakfast. Florian reluctantly agreed. He knew his father would want to talk about which of the potential brides stood a chance of actually becoming his wife. He was right. He had barely time to sit down opposite his father when the latter started to question him.

"There is only one more ball to come and you've danced with every girl. Which one do you prefer? You do have a preference, don't you?"

"How can I choose a wife from among girls I've only danced with twice? I don't know anything about them," Florian answered.

"That's what your mother and I thought as well. So we'll give you the chance to meet them all in an informal way. From today until the last ball your mother will organise an afternoon tea every day where you can meet and talk to these girls. That should help you to make a decision."

"Please, tell me I'm asleep and this is a nightmare," groaned Florian.

"Pull yourself together. Remember, you're not only choosing a wife, you're choosing the future queen of our country."

"I know, dad, but can you remember that I'm not just choosing a queen? I have to share my life with the woman I choose. I hope to be as lucky as you were with mum. I hope you understand that."

Florian got up and left his father's office. Grabbing his climbing gear and some food on the way, he went into the mountains as far as he could. The exercise calmed him down and when he returned in time for his mother's afternoon tea, he could act the perfect gentleman. He didn't say much but asked questions and learned that he had absolutely nothing in common with any of the girls present. Every day he met a new group of hopefuls. There were pretty girls, regal looking girls, clever girls and nice girls but never one who combined all his wishes in one person. There were also giggly girls, vain girls, silly girls, stupid girls and girls who weren't really interested in Florian.

Rosalind was always there to help Queen Isabella and Florian became more and more convinced she would be a great queen for his country. But would his parents agree to a marriage with a girl that wasn't a princess? And did he love her? They got on well together; they were even friends but would it be enough for married life? Florian didn't know.

A fortnight after the first tea afternoon Florian was introduced to the last group of princesses. One of them was Princess Anastasia, Rosalind's friend. The two girls sat together and Florian had some difficulty concentrating on the babbling of the other girls. One in particular seemed to be chatting endlessly. "If only she had an off-button," Florian thought. When this last afternoon ended Florian had a real sense of freedom. He felt like celebrating and asked Rosalind, "Would you come with me on a walk to The Lakes and a visit to Alfonso's tomorrow?"

"I'm sorry Florian, but I can't," she answered. "I'm going ice-skating with Anastasia, Georgy and Eloisa. Prince Andrew will be there as well and Anastasia asked me if I would pair up with Andrew's brother Bertram. I said 'yes' to help her out."

"Oh … all right," was all Florian could answer. It dawned on him that this could be the future. If Rosalind married she would never ever again have time for him. He felt sick.

Just to be away from the girls in the castle, Florian went to The Lakes on his own and didn't enjoy it. In the end he went to Alfonso's and sat all on his own at a table. Towards the evening he was the only guest still there so Alfonso went to sit with him.

"You've been sitting here on your own for the best part of the day, looking as if you've been kicked out of paradise. What's up?"

"Everything. I need to find a wife; none of the candidates interests me and I'm afraid Rosalind will get married one day. I've felt like kicking a man out who was not treating her respectfully. I was angry with her dance partner until I heard he was a married friend. Today she's out with some princes and I feel sick at the thought one of them may take her away from here. I don't know what to do anymore. It's driving me crazy."

"Well that's the easiest problem ever. Marry Rosalind. You two are just perfect for each other. That is without taking into account that you are crazy about each other. Easier than pie."

"How can this be love? I feel sick, I feel angry …"

Alfonso interrupted him, "You feel like pushing every man away who even looks at her. Am I right? You are jealous because you love the girl."

"You are mad. Your frozen cream has frozen your brain as well. What you said can't be right. I'm off. I'm not listening to your crazy ideas anymore."

On his way home Florian thought about Rosalind. As far as he knew she was no princess. She'd been introduced to him as Rosalind, not Princess Rosalind and his mother had said she was a daughter of her friend Charlotte, not Queen Charlotte. His mother would have kittens if he said he wanted to marry Rosalind.

He wondered why his parents had thought three balls could accomplish what ten years of travelling hadn't. He was still no nearer to finding a princess bride.

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To Be Continued ...


	21. Chapter 11-5

**Author's Note: As ever thanks to Jimli for reviewing and also welcome and thank you to The Last Moongazer for the review and for following and favouriting this story**

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**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**11.5**

The night before the last ball Florian couldn't sleep. He went out early in the morning and strolled up into the mountains. Eventually he arrived at the place he'd gone to on his first walk with Rosalind. Beneath him lay the Black Lakes, that time of the year blacker than ever. They reminded him of Rosalind's eyes that looked as dark and mysterious when she felt something deeply. And yet her eyes could sparkle like stars when she was happy. All the times he'd spent with her played like a picture show in his mind. Her laughter, her friendliness, her seriousness, her intelligence; it had all been there for him from the very beginning. He just couldn't imagine his life without her. Alfonso had been right and he'd been a fool. Princess or not, Rosalind was the right woman for him and for his country. If his parents didn't see it, he would make them see. Having made up his mind, Florian started to go down towards the castle.

Halfway down the mountain he saw the silliest thing he could have imagined. One of the princesses who stayed in the castle – the youngest one of all, still a child at fourteen – was sitting next to the path dressed up like a porcelain shepherdess in a flowery dress with hooped skirt, a straw hat, high heeled shoes and an imitation of a shepherd's crook with a bow tied to it in her hand. Totally inappropriate for the place and the time of year.

"Hello, I'm Princess Gabrielle," she said when she saw him. "I noticed you leaving this morning and followed you but I couldn't see where you'd gone to."

Florian recognised the girl. She and her family stayed at the castle because her mother was a cousin and close friend of Queen Isabella.

"You'd better turn back or you'll be late for breakfast, Princess Gabrielle," he remarked.

"I can't. I've sprained my ankle." She pouted. "This silly path is so uneven."

Florian sighed, "Let me have a look."

The ankle didn't seem really swollen. He pressed it here and there and she made a moaning noise but that seemed to confirm his suspicion that the sprain was a ruse to get his attention.

"I don't see much wrong with it," he said comfortingly. Unfortunately that was not to the girl's liking.

"I won't be able to get down. I'll freeze here. You have to bandage my foot and carry me down."

If it had been summer he would have left her but he feared the silly girl would remain there until she became ill from exposure. Without hesitating he picked her up and carried her down the mountain.

When they were on the flat road towards the castle the girl suggested, "You'll have to marry me now, you know."

"No, I don't," answered Florian. "I'm just doing my duty as a gentleman by bringing you down with an injured ankle."

"Yes, but they'll think we had a meeting up there in the early hours of the day. They'll assume we have an understanding and my parents will want us to get married."

Florian froze in his tracks. "So that's what you had planned."

"Yes, and it worked as well."

The triumphant tone of her voice riled him. He walked over to the nearest one of the benches that were scattered at the side of the road and sat her down on it.

"Nothing worked," he said. "I'm going to the castle now and I will tell your parents what stupid stunt you pulled. I'll tell them how you tried to entrap me and I'll tell them where they can find you. You can sit here and nurse your ankle until they come, but as I doubt there is anything wrong with it you'll be able to walk back to the castle. Remember this," he added in a threatening voice, "I will not be bullied, coerced or trapped into a marriage. So don't try it."

Then he left her. With big strides he walked to the castle where he did exactly what he'd told the girl he'd do. Her parents were upset and apologised to Florian. When Princess Gabrielle arrived shortly after Florian her sisters – she was the youngest of three – shouted at her. They were furious and blamed her for ruining their chances.

Florian left them to their squabbles and went looking for his father but couldn't find him. He didn't see his mother or Rosalind either. Not until the moment they had to leave for the last ball did he see his parents and there was no opportunity to tell them about his decision

King Floris, Queen Isabella and Florian were the first to arrive at the hotels' atrium. The full moon was shining through the glass ceiling at the centre of the atrium, its light captured and reflected by faceted crystal orbs hanging from the crossbeams. It gave the area of the dance floor a mysterious, otherworldly look. The décor was all done in white and silver turning the place into a winter fairy land. It reminded Florian of Queen Gwyneira's ice castle. He thought his mother had done a splendid job, and told her so.

"This was Rosalind's idea. She's done it all by herself," his mother told him.

Just like previous times Florian had to welcome all the guests. Nearly the last arrivals were Princess Gabrielle and her family. Florian greeted the parents and sisters politely. Then Gabrielle stood in front of him afraid to look up.

"Well?" her father barked.

In a little voice she said, "Prince Florian, please forgive me for what I did this morning. It was wrong to try and force you. I will never do it again."

The tears in her voice were real this time. Florian realised that her parents and especially her sisters had given her a hard time and felt a bit sorry for the girl. She was after all still very young. Making his voice as stern as he could he said, "If you give me your solemn promise not to do the same thing to any other prince ever again, I'll forgive you."

She finally dared look at him as she promised, "No, never ever ever. I will never do that sort of thing again, to anybody. I promise, I promise, cross my heart, hope to die."

"Good, then I forgive you," Florian managed to say with his last ounce of seriousness, and turned to the next person to welcome them to the ball.

From then on Florian was the ideal man to Princess Gabrielle. She kept looking for just such another one. It took her ten years before she found her mister right in Prince Frank who had matured nicely after quitting Princess Veronica's tea party.

When all the guests had arrived Florian went looking for Rosalind. There was no point asking his parents' blessing. He didn't know if Rosalind would want to marry him. He looked everywhere, ignoring any girl who crossed his path.

"Somebody must have seen her," he thought and decided to ask the staff. They went around all the time and might have seen her. Finally a receptionist of one of the hotels told him Miss Rosalind was using a small parlour for guests on the first floor. He ran up two stairs at a time. When he arrived at the door nerves overtook him. What would she say? Would she accept him or reject him?

Florian knocked on the door and went in. Rosalind was sitting in an easy chair, staring at the flames in the open fire. She started when she saw the man she'd been thinking about. It felt as if he'd walked out of her musings into the room.

"Florian," she exclaimed. "Shouldn't you be downstairs? The King will want to announce your betrothal."

"He can't do that without me, and I need to ask you something."

This was the moment Rosalind had feared from the moment the first invitation had been sent. Florian would ask her what she thought of this or that girl. He would ask her which one she considered to be the best future queen.

"I don't think I can advise you on what girl you should marry, Florian. That is something you have to do yourself," she said and got up to leave the room. She needed to get away as far as possible until she could go back home. However much she felt sorry to abandon Aunt Belle, she knew she couldn't stay and see Florian with his bride every day.

She went towards the door but Florian blocked it and grabbed her arm.

"Rosalind, wait!"

"Let me go, Florian. I need to check on something."

"That can wait. I have something important to ask you, otherwise there definitely won't be any engagement today."

"I can't! I can't!" she cried. "Please, Florian, don't do this to me. Don't make me tell you who you should marry."

Florian took the weeping girl in his arms and kissed her tenderly on the head.

"I know perfectly well which girl I want to marry … if you'll have me."

She pulled back from him. She needed to see his eyes, to see that what he said was true.

"Mmme … you … you want me?" She couldn't believe it. "But there are so many pretty princesses and I'm ugly or plain at best."

"Don't let anybody say that. You are not plain and definitely not ugly. You've got copper lights in your hair and the most beautiful eyes I've ever seen. You're smarter than me, full of bright ideas; you're kind and friendly and never put on airs; a perfect queen for my country. We have similar interests; we like doing similar things. I really can't be without you anymore. I must have seen every princess in the whole world by now but it is you I love, Rosalind. You and no one else. Please, say you'll marry me." Then, because she didn't answer immediately, a terrible thought struck him. "Or am I too late. Is there someone else? Rosalind?"

She'd hidden her head against his chest when he praised her. His words were like a balm that smoothed away every hurtful word and sneer about her plainness, and every slight and insult she'd suffered. Here was a man who loved her, and not any man but Florian, the man she loved more than she thought it was possible to love. She heard the panic in his voice when he called her name and looked up at him.

He didn't need her whispered, "Yes, I'll marry you." Her sparkling eyes said it all. He kissed her, delicate at first, then more passionately.

A knock on the door disturbed them. King Floris and Queen Isabella had sneaked out of the ballroom to look for their son. They needed to know the name of his chosen bride so the king could announce the engagement.

"I thought you would be here," said Queen Isabella, smiling. "I get the impression you don't want to make any decision without asking Rosalind's opinion."

"I didn't come here to ask Rosalind's opinion but to get her answer. I've asked her to be my wife and I'm happy to say, she's accepted."

"Rosalind? You want to marry Rosalind? I gave three expensive balls and you want to marry the girl who was here the whole time?" King Floris sounded somewhat annoyed.

"I'm sorry," retorted Florian, "but those balls were your idea, not mine. I would gladly have done without them."

"True," admitted the king. "I'll wait with the announcement until Rosalind's family arrives. They've been delayed by bad weather."

"They are coming? Why would they be coming?"

"Florian, you can be stupid sometimes," said Queen Isabella. "Rosalind couldn't stay here once you had a wife. She was going to go home after your engagement."

"Not now she isn't," was Florian's quick answer.

"Yes, of course she is," the queen tried to explain patiently. "Your future bride can't live under the same roof as you. Besides she'll want to make preparations for the wedding."

"You don't seem upset that I chose Rosalind instead of some princess. You always insisted I marry a princess."

"Florian! Honestly! You want to marry a girl and you don't know who she is. Let me introduce you to the girl you want to marry. This is Princess Rosalind, daughter of my best friend Queen Charlotte and her husband King Louis."

"I never knew, did I. You only told me she was Rosalind, a daughter of your friend Charlotte. No mention of titles at all."

"Didn't I? Well, it doesn't matter now. You've made your choice and a good one too." Queen Isabella seemed to be very pleased with her son's choice.

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To be continued ...


	22. Chapter 11-6

**PRINCE FLORIAN SEEKS A BRIDE**

**11.6**

King Floris and Queen Isabella went back to their guests, closely followed by Florian and Rosalind. Since the start of the first ball Florian wanted to dance with Rosalind and now he was going to. Nobody was going to stop him. Quite a few of the princesses were jealous of the girl in Florian's arms and wondered about her. They were into their third dance when Rosalind's parents finally arrived. A hotel employee escorted them to their suite of rooms where Florian's parents joined them.

King Floris welcomed the visitors to his country and Queen Isabella asked them about their journey. When all the chitchat was dealt with the king came straight to the point.

"I know you came here to take your daughter back home, but something unexpected has happened. Florian asked Rosalind to be his wife and she accepted. He'll be here soon to ask your permission officially."

Just then, after a quick rap on the door, the two young people entered the room. Florian wasted even less time than his father.

"Your Majesties," he said with a bow. "Welcome to our country. I presume my father has informed you already. Your daughter Rosalind and I … we love each other and we ask you to give your consent and bless our union."

King Louis seemed to love the sound of his own voice. He talked about the importance of marriage, the need to for a monarch to find the right partner – "As if that is not important to everyone," thought Florian – the many difficulties a royal marriage would have to face – "As if ordinary people haven't got any," it shot through Florian's mind – the pressure to produce an heir, the obligation to smile even when you wanted to cry, etc… etc…

Queen Charlotte occasionally prodded her husband in a get-on-with-it way and eventually King Louis said what everybody wanted to hear, "Florian, Rosalind, you two are old enough to know your own mind. If you want to join in matrimony and link our two countries in friendship, you have our blessing."

Before he could add more Queen Charlotte cried out, "I'm so happy for you Rosalind."

This stopped any further declarations King Louis had wanted to make. Everyone congratulated the young people and each other.

"I never thought I'd see this day," Queen Charlotte said to Florian's mother. "With Rosalind being so plain and ordinary I never thought anyone would want her."

"Enough!" Florian's outburst stopped all conversation. "Rosalind is not plain and definitely not ordinary. You're so used to call her your 'plain daughter' you forgot to look at her. The first one to call her plain in my hearing, I'll personally frogmarch to prison for insulting the future queen."

"Calm down, son," his father said. "The only thing that matters is what _you_ think of her. People told me my future wife was a shrew and marriage with her would be hell."

"Floris, really," Queen Isabella muttered.

"It's the truth, dear. You know that. Well, I ignored everyone, married the woman I loved and haven't regretted it for a moment. What's more, everyone came round to my opinion of your mother and there isn't a person anywhere who calls her anything but kind-hearted. Now let's go. It's about time I announced this engagement and destroyed the dream of a bunch of princesses."

Of course there was general amazement when the king announced the betrothal of his son, Prince Florian to Princess Rosalind. With quite a lot of exotic and exquisite beauties to choose from Prince Florian had preferred a plai… ord… non-traditionally beautiful bride. But these were polite people, so they kept their thoughts to themselves and congratulated Florian, Rosalind and their parents. Quite a few, having met her, agreed 'the girl has something'.

In the days following the third ball the guests left the country. A few princesses had weddings of their own to plan, others had good prospects and as always there was a group of very disappointed girls. Rosalind's parents stayed a bit longer to talk about when and where the wedding would be. They were already planning the nuptials of their youngest daughter Princess Alice who was getting married in spring, though not to the man she'd been secretly engaged to. That relationship, entered into at an early age, had run its course and had been ended by mutual consent. Florian didn't want to wait another year for Rosalind so he suggested the marriage could take place in his country. It had all sorts of advantages. He was an only child, which meant there would be no other royal weddings for his people to enjoy; Rosalind had been living there for years, so she was really an inhabitant anyway; and Queen Isabella would love to take her only chance to organise an event of this magnitude. When King Floris added that he'd foot the bill if the wedding took place in his country, King Louis instantly agreed.

The time until the wedding day seemed to crawl by to Florian. When Rosalind's sister Alice had her spring wedding, Florian would finally see his fiancée again. They enjoyed being together visiting the attractions in Rosalind's home country. During the marriage ceremony and the feast afterwards he could see the sisters dressed in all their finery. He thought Rosalind more than held her own next to them. The visit was only a short one but at least they could commence the countdown to their own special day. Somehow, incredibly, time had slowed down even more. Florian thought it didn't crawl anymore but was at a complete standstill. When he complained about it too much, his mother had enough;

"Here," she said and gave him a note, "all this has to be done before your wedding day. That'll stop you complaining about time being too slow."

The tasks on the list kept him so busy that he nearly complained time was going too fast. Nearly but not quite, not after seeing the look on his mother's face.

Then the guests started to arrive. First of all, the bride with her parents; a few days later her sisters and their families and then slowly all the rest of the guests arrived. Among them were some of the people Florian had met on his journey. He proudly introduced Rosalind to Queen Maria and King David, who had brought their little boy along. Princess Asherah and Prince Eric embraced him like a brother and brought greetings and best wishes from Sister Maria-Clara. Asherah was overjoyed that Florian too had found a soul mate.

The arrival of Princess Sophie didn't go by unnoticed. There was consternation when a dragon came flying over the capital. It landed on the lawn in front of the castle. Everyone ran inside, screaming but Florian took Rosalind by the hand and walked up to the beast.

"Twinkle," he said, while scratching the beast behind the ears, "have you been a good dragon? Yes, yes, Twinkle is a good dragon."

Rosalind was amazed when the animal purred. Then a voice apparently from the dragon said, "You'll spoil her rotten."

"Hello, Sophie," Florian said to the redhead who jumped down from the dragon. "Everything all right with you and Twinkle?"

"Absolutely fine," she said, laughing, "and we have a new member in our team." and she introduced her husband to Florian.

On the day of the wedding the neighbours arrived for the service. They had all declined to stay for the party, claiming previous engagements except for Florian's friends, Queen Amanda and her husband, now King Francis, as well as her brother and his wife, Prince Armand and Princess Anna.

The wedding service was simple and solemn. The church was decorated with white flowers. Rosalind wore a creamy white silk dress, gathered at the front in two places to reveal the lace skirt underneath. Her dark hair was braided and decorated with white roses and white orchids, the same flowers as her bouquet. Florian thought she'd never looked more beautiful and nobody even thought Rosalind looked plain. Their first kiss as man and wife made the crowd in the church and outside burst out in such a cheer that the windows rattled. Florian and Rosalind slowly made their way out of the building. They had to shake so many hands and accept so many flowers and gifts they thought they'd never make it to the door.

No sooner had they arrived outside or for the second time in less than a week, a strange object was seen flying through the sky, hurtling at great speed towards the church. It was a gold and silver orb that stopped in front of the newlyweds. It suddenly disappeared and there stood the most amazing couple anyone had ever seen. A dark giant with golden eyes and dressed in gold and a silver girl just over half his size walked up to Florian. The giant shook Florian's hand and the silver girl embraced him.

"I'm so glad you didn't mope about me too long," she said. "This girl suits you a lot better than I ever could have."

"I know," answered Florian. "We both got what we needed." Then he introduced Rosalind to the little ice-queen Gwyneira and her fiery king Dai.

The hotel atrium was splendidly decorated. Queen Isabella had wanted to make an impact for her only son's wedding. The feast itself was grand but not stiff. The guests had a wonderful time and enjoyed themselves immensely. Florian and Rosalind stayed until the last guest had decided to go to bed. The next day they left for a short honeymoon in the mountains of their country. It still had some remote and quiet places where newlyweds could enjoy each other in peace. A fortnight later they started on a tour of the country. Florian showed Rosalind all the places he'd been to and at the same time introduced her to all their future subjects.

Florian and Rosalind had children, became King and Queen and ruled over their small, peaceful country full of contented people. They always loved their walks in the mountains and it was not unusual for their subjects to see them there, or at The Lakes, swimming and playing with their children, or even at Alfonso's having an iced cream or a drink.

Florian was considered to be a wise King who had visited far and distant lands; a special man who could have had any princess in the whole wide world; a man who had strange friends who travelled in gold-and-silver orbs or flew on dragons or had eyes like the sea and blue hair. And Queen Rosalind, they reasoned, must be special too because King Florian chose her above all the foreign princesses.

Here ends the story of prince Florian who went around the world looking for a bride and in the end found one at home.

THE END

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**Author's Note: For the last time a thank you to faithful reviewer Jimli. But also a big thank you to everyone who read this story. I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it. **


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